Middle East latest: Gaza ceasefire talks press on in Qatar

Israel and Hamas appear to be inching closer to a phased ceasefire agreement, officials said Monday. However, a deal hasn't been reached yet and there are a number of obstacles that could still scupper the talks in Qatar.

Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants stormed into southern Israel and killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. A third of the 100 hostages still held in Gaza are believed to be dead.

The Israel Hamas-war has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to health authorities there. The Health Ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians, but says women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

Some Israeli soldiers have refused to keep fighting and are speaking out against the 15-month conflict, saying they saw or did things that crossed ethical lines — including the indiscriminate killing of Palestinians.

Here's the latest:

A missile fired by Houthi rebels targets central Israel

JERUSALEM — A missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels targeted central Israel early Tuesday, causing sirens to blare and people to flee into bomb shelters. Several Israeli strikes also hit the Gaza Strip overnight and early on Tuesday.

Israeli police said several homes outside Jerusalem were damaged by fallen debris and released a photo of what appeared to be a missile casing on the roof of a house.

Israel's military also said an earlier missile was intercepted before it entered Israeli territory.

Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, who have held Yemen's capital, Sanaa, since 2014, have launched direct attacks on Israel and some 100 commercial ships as part of their campaign over Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Houthis later acknowledged the attack early Tuesday.

Head of the International Court of Justice is named Lebanon's new prime minister

Salam is currently serving as the head of the International Court of Justice and his nomination was made by Western-backed groups as well as independents in the Lebanese parliament. Salam has the support of Saudi Arabia and Western countries as well. Hezbollah legislators abstained from naming any candidate for the prime minister's post.

Salam's nomination is seen by many as a glimpse of hope after the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war that left 4,000 people dead and more than 16,000 wounded and caused destruction totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. The war stopped in late November when a U.S.-brokered 60-day truce went into effect.

Trump says a hostage and ceasefire deal could be completed by week's end

President-elect Donald Trump said Monday that he believed a hostage and ceasefire deal could potentially be completed by the end of the week.

''And I understand it's, it's been – there's been a handshake and they're getting it finished,'' Trump said in a Newsmax interview. ''But it has to take place.''

Trump's incoming Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is in the region and has met with Israeli and Qatari officials in recent days. He's closely coordinating with Joe Biden's outgoing Middle East envoy, Brett McGurk, who has been in Doha for several days.

Trump last week warned that ''all hell'' would be unleashed on Hamas if a deal is not reached before his inauguration on Jan. 20.

He reiterated his warning for Hamas to come to terms with the Israelis.

''If they don't get it done,'' Trump said. ''There's going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble like they have never seen before.''

Biden's secretary of state says it's important Trump's envoy is involved in ceasefire talks

''I think Steve Witkoff has been a terrific partner in this, and also President-elect Trump in making clear that he wants to see this deal go forward, and go forward before January 20th,'' Blinken said in an interview with MSNBC.

''Everyone wants to know – and it's very useful as well to have Steve a part of this – they want to make sure that the deal that the president's put on the table and that we've negotiated, the Trump administration will continue to back," Blinken said. ''So creating that confidence by having Steve Witkoff's participation, I think, has been critical.''

Under the terms of the agreement being discussed, the U.S. is one of several guarantors and will have a key role in making sure that its first phase — which would see a halt in hostilities and the release of hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners held by Israel — is followed by the successful implementation of its second phase, which aims to prepare for Gaza's post-conflict future, including security, reconstruction and governance.

Israelis demonstrate for and against a Gaza ceasefire deal

JERUSALEM — Around 1,000 Israelis blocked the main highway entering Jerusalem and demonstrated against a ceasefire deal, marching with a sign that read ''You have no mandate to surrender to Hamas.''

''We're not getting any guidance yet from the government of Israel, understanding if it is a deal for all the hostages or is it just a partial deal,'' said Ruby Chen, whose son, Israeli-American Itay Chen, was taken hostage from his military base. Israel determined that Chen was likely killed on Oct. 7, 2023, and his body is still in Gaza.

Ruby Chen said when it seemed that talks were starting to gain momentum 10 days ago, he flew to Qatar with other families to press for a deal to include all of the hostages, including the bodies of those who have died.

Israel's military says 5 soldiers are killed in northern Gaza

JERUSALEM — Israel's military said five of its soldiers were killed in Beit Hanoun on Monday, raising the number of Israeli soldiers killed in combat in northern Gaza over the past week to 15. The military did not provide details on the five soldiers' deaths.

The large number of fatalities could garner more support for a ceasefire among the Israeli public. In a country where military service is mandatory, reports of soldiers' deaths lead the news and have increased pressure on the Israeli government to end previous conflicts.

Israel says it intercepted a missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels

JERUSALEM — Israel's military said it intercepted a missile fired toward the country by Yemen's Houthi rebels, setting off sirens on Monday across the Jordan Valley and the occupied West Bank. There were no reports of injuries from Magen David Adom, Israel's rescue service.

The Houthis have been firing drones and missiles at Israel for almost a year, and the frequency has increased to near-daily attacks over the past month — attacks the Houthis say won't stop until Israel agrees to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Israel has carried out multiple waves of intense strikes in recent weeks in Yemen in response to the missile attacks. The latest launch raises the likelihood of further Israeli retaliation. The U.S. and partner forces have also launched multiple rounds of airstrikes against the Houthis.

Palestinians plant olive trees to honor Jimmy Carter

The former president's legacy is ''rooted" among Palestinians and across the world, said Abbas Melhem, executive manager of the Palestinian Farmers Union, because Carter was one of the few world leaders who ''stood firmly supporting the struggle of the Palestinians for independence and for freedom.''

Under clear winter skies, Palestinian kids helped a handful of adults place the trees into newly dug holes. Melhem said the 10 dunam (2.5 acre) grove in the city of Tulkarem, titled ''Freedom Farm,'' would be fenced in to protect it from animals or extremist Jewish settlers, who have attacked Palestinian olive trees in the past.

The advocacy group for farmers in the West Bank launched the project in collaboration with U.S.-based nonprofit Treedom for Palestine.

Carter, who died last month at the age of 100, brokered the Camp David peace accords between Israel and Egypt in 1978. In his later years, he was highly critical of Israel's rule over the Palestinians, saying that the situation in the West Bank amounted to apartheid.

''I think planting olive trees that live at least 100 years old like him is a very suitable way to honor his life and his legacy,'' said George Zeidan, the Carter Center's Director in Israel and Palestine.

CAIRO — At least 14 Palestinians, including a family of five people, were killed in three separate Israeli airstrikes Monday in northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian medics said.

One strike hit a group of people in the Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City, killing at least seven people including two children, the health ministry's emergency service said.

Two more people were killed in Jabaliya al-Balad area in northern Gaza, it said. Another five people were wounded in the strike, it said.

A third strike hit Salaheddin school, which shelters displaced families in the western part of Gaza City. The strike killed two parents and their three children, according to the Al-Ahly hospital which received the casualties.

The Israeli army said it had struck Hamas militants and had taken measures to minimize civilian harm. The army blames Hamas for civilian casualties, saying militants operate in residential areas or other civilian locations.

JERUSALEM — A 75-year-old Israeli woman who was injured by rocket fire from Lebanon seven weeks ago has died of her wounds, local officials said.

Tamar Edri, a resident of the northern city of Nahariya, was critically injured when a rocket hit her home late on November 25, just over a day before the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel took hold, the city's municipality said in a statement. Two other people were injured in the barrage that killed Edri, which followed over two months of near daily attacks on the city.

On November 27 a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon went into effect. It has largely held since then despite violations by both sides.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, the day after the deadly Hamas attack into Israel that ignited the ongoing war in Gaza. Since then, Israeli air and ground assaults killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians, and Hezbollah rockets killed 77 people in Israel, most of them civilians.

Lebanon's new prime minister is set to be Nawaf Salam, head of the ICJ

Salam is currently serving as the head of the International Court of Justice and his nomination was made by Western-backed groups as well as independents in the Lebanese parliament. Salam is backed by Saudi Arabia and western countries.

Monday's nomination of Salam during binding consultations with President Joseph Aoun is a major blow to Hezbollah, which is also a powerful political party, after its militant wing was weakened by a 14-month war with Israel.

By Monday afternoon, Salam had received the support of 73 members of parliament out of the 128-member legislature, meaning he will be summoned by the president to form a new Cabinet.

Salam faces a difficult mission. Lebanon is forging ahead after a shaky truce ended the Israel-Hezbollah war, and Salam must also work to get the small nation out of its historic five-year economic meltdown.

Salam's nomination and army commander Aoun's selection as president last week are likely to lead to flow of funds from Western and oil-rich Arab nations to Lebanon to help in the reconstruction process.

WASHINGTON — White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday that progress has been made in the Israel-Hamas hostage and ceasefire talks and ''there is a distinct possibility that we can get this deal done just before President Biden leaves office.''

''We've been close before and haven't gotten across the finish line,'' said Sullivan, speaking at an event in Washington hosted by Bloomberg News. ''Can we get to a final agreement, and then can we begin implementing it in the coming days? It's there for the taking. So the question is, now, can we all collectively seize the moment and make this happen?''

Sullivan added that he spoke on Monday morning with Qatar's prime minister, Israeli negotiators and White House Middle East adviser Brett McGurk, who is in Doha for the talks, about the ongoing negotiations.

Israel confirms a Gaza hospital director is at a notorious military prison in the West Bank

JERUSALEM — An Israeli rights group says Hossam Abu Safiya, the director of a north Gaza hospital who had disappeared since he was taken by Israeli troops during a raid two weeks ago, is being held in a notorious Israeli military prison in the occupied West Bank.

Colleagues and family have expressed fears over the safety of Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, after troops seized him and dozens of others during a Dec. 27 raid on the hospital. Former detainees have reported harsh conditions at Ofer Prison, including beatings, minimal food rations and refusals of medical care.

A prominent Palestinian surgeon detained in a hospital raid in December 2023 died in Ofer Prison the following April.

The military has said Abu Safiya is being investigated on suspicion of cooperating with or working for Hamas. It claims that Hamas fighters were using the hospital as a refuge and base amid Israel's months-long offensive in surrounding areas of north Gaza. It says it detained 240 Hamas and Islamic Jihad members from the hospital in the raid, although it has provided no evidence.

Staff deny the claims, and the Gaza Health Ministry says at least 60 medical staff were among those detained. Colleagues say the 51-year-old Abu Safiya kept Kamal Adwan Hospital operating even as Israeli troops besieged it for around 85 days starting in October.

He became known for his frequent videos, pleading for international help as Israeli fire hit the hospital multiple times during the siege. One of his sons was killed by an Israeli drone strike during the siege, and Abu Safiya was wounded by shrapnel from another strike.

A woman protests against Israel at a campaign event in Germany

BIELEFELD, Germany — A woman protesting Israel's actions in Gaza has briefly disrupted an election campaign event by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, standing up and smearing her face and hood with a blood-colored substance.

Germany is a staunch ally of Israel. Scholz responded to the disruption on Monday by saying: ''The answer is that it was a terrible terrorist attack by Hamas on Israeli citizens over a year ago. It is right that the state of Israel can defend itself against this attack.''

He said that Germany has always been clear in its support for a two-state solution and that international law must be adhered to.

The woman was escorted out of the hall in the western city of Bielefeld, shouting ''genocide,'' ''Free Palestine'' and ''Over 200 dead journalists.''

Israel and Hamas have been holding indirect talks for more than a year aimed at ending the war in Gaza and returning scores of militant-held hostages in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

There has been intensive mediation by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

But the talks have repeatedly stalled over several key issues. They include details of the exchange, whether the ceasefire would be permanent and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. The war has ground on as each side has accused the other of backtracking.

___

— By Joseph Krauss.

CAIRO — U.S. and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, but a deal hasn't been reached yet, officials said Monday.

Three officials acknowledged that progress has been made and said the coming days would be critical for ending more than 15 months of fighting that has destabilized the Middle East. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the talks.

One of the three officials and a Hamas official said that there were still a number of hurdles to clear. On several occasions over the past year, U.S. officials have said that they were on the verge of reaching a deal, only to have the talks stall.

___

— By Victoria Eastwood and Samy Magdy in Cairo, and Josef Federman in Jerusalem.

BEIRUT — The state news agency of the United Arab Emirates says a high-level delegation from the oil-rich nation is in Beirut to undertake all necessary arrangements to reopen the UAE Embassy in Lebanon.

Monday's move came days after Lebanon's army commander, Gen. Joseph Aoun, was elected president ending a 26-month vacuum in the country's top job.

The UAE withdrew its diplomats from Lebanon in October 2021 in protest to comments by a Lebanese Cabinet minister about the war in Yemen.