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Rice prices in Japan last month were almost twice what they were a year earlier, official data showed Friday, as core inflation accelerated in the world’s number four economy.The price of the grain has soared in recent months, prompting Japan’s government to release some of its emergency stockpile into the market.Excluding fresh food, consumer prices …

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Hamas on Thursday signalled its rejection of Israel’s latest truce proposal and called for a “comprehensive” deal to end the 18-month-long war.The Palestinian militants’ chief negotiator spoke out after civil defence rescuers in Gaza said new Israeli air strikes killed at least 40 people, most of them in camps for displaced civilians, as Israel pressed its offensive in the Palestinian territory.The Israeli military said it was looking into reports of the strikes.A Hamas source told AFP that the group sent a written response Thursday to mediators on Israel’s latest proposal for a 45-day ceasefire. Israel had wanted the release of 10 living hostages held by the group, according to Hamas.It also called for the freeing of 1,231 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been under complete blockade since March 2.The proposal called for Hamas to disarm to secure a complete end to the war, a demand the group rejects.”Partial agreements are used by (Israeli Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu as a cover for his political agenda… we will not be complicit in this policy,” Hamas’s chief negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, said in a televised statement.He said Hamas “seeks a comprehensive deal involving a single-package prisoner exchange in return for halting the war, a withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip, and the commencement of reconstruction” in the territory.A previous ceasefire and hostage release deal began on January 19 but collapsed two months later.Israel offered to extend the first phase, while Hamas insisted that negotiations be held for a second phase, as outlined by Joe Biden when he was US president.Israel resumed intensive bombing of Gaza on March 18.- Qatar blames Israel -The emir of Qatar, which with Egypt and the United States helped mediate the January ceasefire, blamed Israel on Thursday for its collapse.”As you know, we reached an agreement months ago, but unfortunately Israel did not abide by this agreement,” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani said during a visit to Moscow.Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said two Israeli missiles hit tents in the Al-Mawasi area of the southern city of Khan Yunis, killing at least 16 people, “most of them women and children, and 23 others were wounded”.Tens of thousands of Palestinians flocked to Al-Mawasi after Israel declared it a safe zone in December 2023. But the area has since been hit by repeated Israeli strikes.Survivors described a large explosion at the densely packed camp that set  tents ablaze.”We were sitting peacefully in the tent, under God’s protection, when we suddenly saw something red glowing — and then the tent exploded, and the surrounding tents caught fire,” Israa Abu al-Rus told AFP.Bassal said Israeli strikes on two other camps for displaced Gazans killed a nine people — seven in the northern town of Beit Lahia, and a father and son near Al-Mawasi.Separately, the civil defence reported two  attacks in Jabalia — one that killed at least seven members of the Asaliya family, and another that killed six people at a school being used as a shelter — as well as Israeli shelling in Gaza City that killed two.The military announced it had carried out a strike in Jabalia on a Hamas “command and control” centre.Israel said Wednesday that it had converted 30 percent of Gaza into a buffer zone in its widening offensive.The United Nations said half a million Palestinians have been displaced since the offensive resumed, triggering what it has described as the most severe humanitarian crisis since the war began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.- Red Cross base -Hamas accused Israel of attempting to starve Gaza’s 2.4 million people after Defence Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday that Israel would continue preventing aid from entering the territory.”This is a public admission of committing a war crime,” the group said in a statement.Medical supplies, fuel, water and other essentials are in short supply, the UN says.The International Committee of the Red Cross, said it was “outraged” that an explosive hit one of its bases in Gaza on Wednesday, the second such strike in three weeks.Israel’s renewed assault has killed at least 1,691 people in Gaza, the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory reported, bringing the overall toll since the war erupted to 51,065, most of them civilians.Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, also mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Members of the largest organisation representing British Jews have said Thursday they can no longer “turn a blind eye” to the Gaza war and that “Israel’s soul is being ripped out”.In a major break with the Board of Deputies of British Jews’ policy of supporting the Israeli leadership, 36 members criticised Prime Minister  Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in an open letter published in the Financial Times.”The inclination to avert our eyes is strong, as what is happening is unbearable, but our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out,” said the letter, signed by around one in eight members of the Board of Deputies.It is the first time since the start of the war, after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, that members of the body have publicly criticised the Israeli government.”We cannot turn a blind eye or remain silent” about the loss of life since a two-month truce collapsed on March 18, the letter added.”Israel’s soul is being ripped out and we, members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, fear for the future of the Israel we love and have such close ties to,” added the letter.The signatories accused the “most extremist of Israeli governments” of “openly encouraging violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.””We stand against the war. We acknowledge and mourn the loss of Palestinian life,” they added.A spokesperson for the Board of Deputies told the Guardian that other members would “no doubt put more emphasis on the fundamental responsibility of Hamas for this ghastly situation.”The president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Phil Rosenberg, said the letter left an “impression” the criticism was “the position of the Board of Deputies as an organisation, and therefore the position of the UK Jewish community as a whole”. He also said that Hamas “is barely mentioned” and that “absolutely no agency is given to Hamas regarding the failure of the implementation of the second stage of the hostage deal”.Hamas’s October 7 attack left 1,218 dead in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data. Of the 251 hostages seized, 58 are still in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead. At least 1,691 Palestinians have been killed since the resumption of the latest Israeli offensive, bringing the death toll in Gaza since the start of the war to 51,065, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry.

Members of the largest organisation representing British Jews have said Thursday they can no longer “turn a blind eye” to the Gaza war and that “Israel’s soul is being ripped out”.In a major break with the Board of Deputies of British Jews’ policy of supporting the Israeli leadership, 36 members criticised Prime Minister  Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in an open letter published in the Financial Times.”The inclination to avert our eyes is strong, as what is happening is unbearable, but our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out,” said the letter, signed by around one in eight members of the Board of Deputies.It is the first time since the start of the war, after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, that members of the body have publicly criticised the Israeli government.”We cannot turn a blind eye or remain silent” about the loss of life since a two-month truce collapsed on March 18, the letter added.”Israel’s soul is being ripped out and we, members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, fear for the future of the Israel we love and have such close ties to,” added the letter.The signatories accused the “most extremist of Israeli governments” of “openly encouraging violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.””We stand against the war. We acknowledge and mourn the loss of Palestinian life,” they added.A spokesperson for the Board of Deputies told the Guardian that other members would “no doubt put more emphasis on the fundamental responsibility of Hamas for this ghastly situation.”The president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Phil Rosenberg, said the letter left an “impression” the criticism was “the position of the Board of Deputies as an organisation, and therefore the position of the UK Jewish community as a whole”. He also said that Hamas “is barely mentioned” and that “absolutely no agency is given to Hamas regarding the failure of the implementation of the second stage of the hostage deal”.Hamas’s October 7 attack left 1,218 dead in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data. Of the 251 hostages seized, 58 are still in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead. At least 1,691 Palestinians have been killed since the resumption of the latest Israeli offensive, bringing the death toll in Gaza since the start of the war to 51,065, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry.

President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States was in talks with China on tariffs, adding that he was confident the world’s largest economies could make a deal to end a bitter trade war.”Yeah, we’re talking to China,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I would say they have reached out a number …

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Stock markets wavered Thursday despite another interest rate cut by the European Central Bank as investors remain on edge over the fallout from President Donald Trump’s tariffs blitz.In New York, the Dow and the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended losses while the broad-based S&P 500 edged up.Wall Street had slumped on Wednesday as Federal Reserve chief Jerome …

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Gaza’s civil defence rescue agency said Thursday that a rash of Israeli air strikes killed at least 40 people, most of them in encampments for displaced civilians, as Israel pressed its offensive in the Palestinian territory.The Israeli military said it was looking into reports of the strikes, which came as Hamas officials said that internal deliberations on the latest Israeli truce offer were nearly complete.Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said two Israeli missiles hit several tents in the Al-Mawasi area of the southern city of Khan Yunis, resulting in at least 16 deaths, “most of them women and children, and 23 others were wounded”.After Israel declared Al-Mawasi a safe zone in December 2023, tens of thousands of Palestinians flocked there seeking refuge from bombardment, but the area has since been hit by repeated Israeli strikes.Survivors described a large explosion at the densely packed encampment zone that set multiple tents ablaze.”We were sitting peacefully in the tent, under God’s protection, when we suddenly saw something red glowing — and then the tent exploded, and the surrounding tents caught fire,” Israa Abu al-Rus told AFP.”This is supposed to be a safe area in Al-Mawasi,” Abu al-Rus said. “We fled the tent towards the sea and saw the tents burning.” Bassal said Israeli strikes on two other encampments of displaced Gazans killed a further nine people — seven in the northern town of Beit Lahia, and a father and son near Al-Mawasi.Separately, the civil defence reported two more attacks on displaced people in Jabalia — one that killed at least seven members of the Asaliya family, and another that killed six people at a school being used as a shelter — as well as Israeli shelling in Gaza City that killed two.The military later announced it had carried out a strike in Jabalia on what it said was a Hamas “command and control” centre.- ‘Starvation as a weapon’ -Israel said Wednesday that it had converted 30 percent of Gaza into a buffer zone in the widening offensive it resumed in March, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas.Defence Minister Israel Katz said this month that the military was leaving Gaza “smaller and more isolated”.The United Nations said half a million Palestinians have been displaced since the offensive resumed, triggering what it has described as the most severe humanitarian crisis since the war began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.”Every single person in Gaza is relying on humanitarian aid to survive,” the chief executives of 12 NGOs, including Oxfam and Save the Children, wrote in a joint statement.The leader of Qatar, which along with Egypt and the US helped mediate the January ceasefire deal, blamed Israel on Thursday for its collapse.”As you know, we reached an agreement months ago, but unfortunately Israel did not abide by this agreement,” Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani said during a visit to Moscow.- New truce offer -Hamas accused Israel on Thursday of attempting to starve Gaza’s 2.4 million people after Katz said the day before that Israel would continue preventing aid from entering the territory.”This is a public admission of committing a war crime, including the use of starvation as a weapon and the denial of basic necessities such as food, medicine, water, and fuel to innocent civilians for the seventh consecutive week,” the group said in a statement.In parallel to the Gaza offensive, Hamas said Israel had proposed a new 45-day ceasefire through mediators that would include the release of dozens of hostages.The proposal also called for Hamas to disarm to secure a complete end to the war, a demand the group rejects.Two Hamas officials said Thursday that internal discussions on the truce proposal were nearly complete, with one telling AFP “the group will send its response to the mediators once they finish” — possibly on Thursday. “Every time they say truce and just as we begin to catch our breath, the occupation resumes its bombings — even more brutally than before,” said Nidal Wresh Agha, a resident of Rafah.”We pray that this time it is real.”The International Committee of the Red Cross, said it was “outraged” that an explosive hit one of its bases in Gaza on Wednesday, the second such strike in three weeks.It said the strikes “highlight the risks to which civilians, medical staff and humanitarian workers in the Gaza Strip are exposed today”.Israel’s renewed assault has so far killed at least 1,691 people in Gaza, the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory reported, bringing the overall toll since the war erupted to 51,065, most of them civilians.Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, also mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi said Thursday that Iran and the United States were running out of time to secure a deal as they prepare to hold fresh nuclear talks this weekend.Iranian and US delegations are to gather in Rome on Saturday for a second round of Omani-mediated negotiations, a week after the longtime foes held their highest-level talks since US President Donald Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear accord in 2018.In March, Trump sent a letter to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urging talks and warning of possible military action if Iran refused.”We are in a very crucial stage of these important negotiations. We know we don’t have much time. This is why I am here… to facilitate this process,” Grossi said on a visit to Tehran.”We are working hard and we want to succeed,” he told a joint news conference with Iran’s atomic energy agency chief Mohammad Eslami, acknowledging that the effort to secure a deal was “not an easy process”.On Wednesday, Grossi met with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led the first round of talks with US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday.  Araghchi said he had a “useful” meeting with the International Atomic Energy Agency chief.”The IAEA can play a crucial role in peaceful settlement of the Iranian nuclear file in the coming months,” he said. Araghchi called on the IAEA chief to “keep the agency away from politics” in the face of those seeking to “derail current negotiations”. He did not elaborate.Oman’s foreign ministry confirmed it would again mediate the talks, which it said will be in Rome “for logistical reasons.”- ‘Not far’ from possessing bomb -Before heading to Iran, Grossi told French newspaper Le Monde that Tehran was “not far” from possessing a nuclear bomb.Western governments have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons capability, an ambition Tehran has consistently denied.A year after Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran began rolling back its own commitments under the agreement, which gave it relief from sanctions in return for IAEA-monitored restrictions on its nuclear activities.In its latest report, the IAEA said Iran had an estimated 274.8 kilograms (605 pounds) of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent.That level far exceeds the 3.67 percent enrichment ceiling set by the 2015 deal, but still falls short of the 90 percent threshold required for a nuclear warhead.Since he returned to office in January, Trump has revived his “maximum pressure” policy, imposing punishing economic sanctions against Iran. On Thursday Trump said he is “not in a rush” to take military action against Iranian nuclear facilities, “because I think that Iran has a chance to have a great country”.Trump did not confirm a New York Times report that he had blocked an Israeli plan to strike Iranian nuclear facilities in favour of seeking a negotiated deal.Israel did not directly comment on the report, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel would not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons.”The prime minister has led countless overt and covert actions in the battle against Iran’s nuclear programme, without which Iran would today possess a nuclear arsenal,” Netanyahu’s office said.There was no immediate comment from Tehran on the remarks.- ‘Conflicting positions’ -Khamenei has cautioned that while the talks with the United States had started well, they “may or may not yield results.”  On Wednesday, Araghchi said Iran’s enrichment of uranium was not up for discussion after Witkoff called for a halt.Witkoff had previously demanded only that Iran return to the 3.67 percent enrichment ceiling set by the 2015 deal.Araghchi said he hoped to start negotiations on the framework of a possible agreement, but that this required “constructive positions” from the United States.Araghchi was in Moscow on Thursday on a “pre-planned” visit to the Tehran ally, where he met with President Vladimir Putin.”Our regular exchanges with Russia and China have allowed us to align our positions,” Araghchi said on arrival in the Russian capital.Meanwhile, the Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khaled bin Salman travelled to Tehran and delivered a message from the Saudi king to Khamenei, according to the leader’s official website. During his first term, Trump attempted to forge an alliance between Israel and the Gulf Arab states against Iran.But in 2023 Tehran and Riyadh restored ties in a Chinese-brokered rapprochement.