U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared ceasefire negotiations "closer than we’ve been in quite a while" during ASEAN talks in Malaysia, citing general agreement on terms for a 60-day truce. However, he acknowledged critical unresolved issues: Hamas demands guarantees for a permanent peace, Israeli troop withdrawals, and UN-supervised aid access, conditions Israel has historically rejected. Rubio’s optimism contrasts sharply with Hamas’s assertion that Israel’s "intransigence" and refusal to end the war remain fundamental obstacles. The talks, mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the U.S., enter their sixth day in Doha with no implementation framework finalized.
Even as diplomats negotiated, Israeli airstrikes killed 82 Palestinians in 24 hours, including 15 people (9 children, 4 women) massacred while awaiting nutritional supplies in Deir el-Balah. UNICEF Director Catherine Russell condemned the attack as "unconscionable," citing Israel’s systematic blockade of aid and failure to protect civilians. In Gaza City, "quake bombs" leveled the Shati refugee camp, burying families under rubble. "Seven little kids died here. What was their fault?" survivor Ismail al-Bardawil asked. The death toll since October 2023 now exceeds 57,762, with 137,656 wounded, most being women and children.
Gaza’s infrastructure collapse accelerated as Nasser Hospital warned it had entered "crucial and final hours" without fuel, forcing doctors to operate "in boiling heat without air conditioning" amid power cuts. Only 18 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain partially functional, with WHO documenting over 600 attacks on health facilities. The EU brokered a deal with Israel to reopen aid corridors from Jordan and Egypt, but details were vague and Israel continues to insist on distributing aid through its controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), whose security forces have killed 770 Palestinians at aid sites. Hamas and the UN demand aid be routed through neutral agencies to prevent further atrocities.
Despite public flexibility claims, Israel’s delegation in Doha was "mostly listening rather than negotiating," sabotaging progress on aid access and troop withdrawals. Prime Minister Netanyahu, fresh from unfruitful White House meetings with Trump insisted he wants a deal "but not at any price," demanding Hamas’s disarmament while ignoring Palestinian sovereignty. Simultaneously, Defense Minister Israel Katz advanced plans to forcibly relocate Palestinians to a tent city in Rafah, which UNRWA called "de facto concentration camps." This ethnic cleansing blueprint, combined with Israel’s occupation of the strategic Morag corridor, exposes Netanyahu’s intent to annex Gaza.
Though U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff claimed only "one issue" remained unresolved, Hamas clarified that Israel still rejects binding guarantees to transition from a 60-day pause to permanent peace. Qatar set a Sunday deadline for talks before withdrawing mediation. With Netanyahu beholden to far-right coalition partners and Hamas retaining control of Gaza despite 21 months of war, a sustainable ceasefire remains distant. As 1.9 million displaced Palestinians face famine, the world watches whether diplomatic hope will yet again yield to Israel’s bullets and bulldozers.