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The US president, Joe Biden, said yesterday that reports of the killing of more than 100 Palestinians who were waiting near aid trucks meant that the ceasefire he was hoping for would “probably not” happen. Biden had been talking up the prospects for an agreement for a 40-day cessation of hostilities beginning as early as today. But the alleged mass shooting by the Israel Defense Forces of what the Palestinians claimed were civilians trying to get food may have put paid to any chance of that happening. Israel's military denies shooting at the large crowd and says most people were killed in a crush.
And, given the Israeli prime minister’s vision for a post-conflict Gaza, the prospects for a lasting end to hostilities appear bleak, to say the least. Benjamin Netanyahu wants Israel to maintain full security in Gaza while also controlling its border with Egypt and ruling out dealing with Hamas. Palestinian sovereignty this isn’t.
John Strawson of the University of East London has been researching the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for several decades. Here he answers the key questions and concludes that without a major shift in Netanyahu’s position, the hope of peace between Israel and Palestine is vanishingly remote.
A big part of negotiations of a potential peace deal has been about the exchange of the hostages held by Hamas since the October 7 attacks for Palestinian prisoners held in israeli jails for various offences. Here’s why this is so important to both sides of the conflict.
Where I live, February was marked by unseasonably warm temperatures, and what felt like the early appearance of spring flowers and blossoms and the arrival of nesting birds. In our new series, we examine exactly how climate change is affecting nature by altering the seasons – starting with flowers and butterflies.
We also look at celebrity claims that not only is olive oil a tasty and healthy medium for cooking with, but that drinking it by the shot glass or rubbing it into your skin will also keep you looking young and beautiful.
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