EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Friday that there needs to be an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, adding to international pressure for a truce deal between Israel and Hamas.
“We need a ceasefire in Gaza now. That’s the only way to save lives, restore hope for peace, and secure the return of hostages,” von der Leyen wrote on X.
“Thus I strongly support the efforts led by the US, Egypt, and Qatar to help achieve the peace and stability the region needs.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday the country had agreed to resume Gaza ceasefire talks on August 15 at the demand of US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators, as regional tensions skyrocket over the war.
After a week-long pause in November, US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators have endeavoured to secure a second truce in the 10-month-old war sparked by Hamas’s unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel.
In a joint statement Thursday, the three countries’ leaders invited the warring parties to resume talks on August 15 in Doha or Cairo “to close all remaining gaps and commence implementation of the deal without further delay”.
The unprecedented Hamas attack that triggered the war in Gaza resulted in the deaths of 1,198 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.
Palestinian militants seized 251 hostages, 111 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 39 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 39,699 people, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths.
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