Middle East updates: 'Decisive moment' for cease-fire deal
Published August 19, 2024last updated August 19, 2024
What you need to know
- Washington's top diplomat Antony Blinken was in Israel for talks with President Isaac Herzog, calling the moment "decisive" for starting ceasefire talks
- Lebanon-based Hezbollah has claimed fresh attacks on Israeli troops near the two countries' border
- Germany's Lufthansa airline announced it was prolonging its flight stoppage to several destinations in the Middle East
Here's what is happening in the Israel-Hamas war and other parts of the Middle East on Monday, August 19:
Germany's Lufthansa cancels more flights to the Middle East
Lufthansa and its subsidiaries will not fly to or from Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, or Iraq until at least August 26, the airline announced, specifically naming the cities of Tel Aviv, Tehran, Beirut, Amman, and Irbil.
The company cited regional tensions, particularly between Israel and Iran following the killing of Hamas' political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Iran last month.
Lufthansa also said that the group's airlines will also avoid flying over Iraqi and Iranian airspace for other routes.
The previous flight suspension had been set to expire on Wednesday.
HRW: Israeli strikes on Yemen port 'possible war crime'
New York-based NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement saying that Israel's July 20 strike on a key port in Yemen was a "possible war crime."
The attack on the Houthi rebel-held port city of Hodeida came a day after the Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack in Tel Aviv. HRW said the drone attack, which killed one person, could also be a war crime.
The resulting strike on the port decimated the area's fuel storage capacity and killed nine people, six of whom were civilians, according to HRW. Eighty people were injured in the strike.
HRW said the Hodeida port "is critical for delivering food and other necessities to the Yemeni population."
The damage "could have a long-term impact on millions of Yemenis who rely on the port for food and humanitarian aid," it said.
UN: 2023 deadliest year for aid workers
More humanitarian workers were killed in warzones in 2023 than in any previous year, the United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a new report.
A total of 280 aid workers died last year, a number the OCHA called "outrageously high" and which marks the "deadliest year on record for the global humanitarian community."
"The normalization of violence against aid workers and the lack of accountability are unacceptable, unconscionable, and enormously harmful for aid operations everywhere."
The 280 figure represented a 117% increase over 2022. The deadliest regions for aid workers were listed as Sudan, South Sudan, and the Gaza Strip. Over half (163) were registered in Gaza in the three months after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, mainly as a result of Israeli airstrikes.
Police investigate fatal explosion in Tel Aviv
Security services in Tel Aviv were investigating a suspected terror attack after a man's backpack exploded in the southern part of the city on Sunday evening.
The bomb killed the man carrying the backpack and injured one passerby. Police believe it was meant to be part of a larger terror attack.
President Isaac Herzog, addressing the situation during a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said it appeared as though "a major terror attack" had been planned in the city.
Later on Monday, Hamas claimed responsibility for the bombing.
'Intensive diplomatic effort' underway
Ahead of a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, top US diplomat Antony Blinken said he was "part of an intensive diplomatic effort...to try to get this agreement to the line and ultimately over the line...It is time for everyone to get to yes and to not look for any excuses to say no."
Peace talks are scheduled in Cairo later this week, with Egypt, the US, and Qatar as mediators. A cease-fire has long been stalled by Israel and Hamas' refusal to budge on several points, including a proposal to permanently station Israeli troops in the middle of Gaza to control movement between the north and south.
"This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a cease-fire and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security," Blinken said amid fears that recent strikes in Lebanon and Iran could lead to a wider regional conflict.
Hezbollah claims new cross-border attack
The militant group Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon and is supported by Iran, said on Monday that it had attacked soldiers in northern Israel.
Hezbollah said it carried out a "simultaneous air attack" with "explosive-laden drones" on a military barracks and a base near the town of Acre, about 15 kilometers (10 miles) from the border.
They said the strike was in retaliation for a fighter who had been killed in an Israeli strike on Saturday.
Israel and Hezbollah, which supports Hamas, have been trading strikes for weeks. The Israeli military did not immediately confirm the militants' claims.
What happened on August 18?
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Tel Aviv ahead of peace talks to be held in Egypt later this week.
Washington had expressed optimism about the talks. However, Hamas has said it is deeply dissatisfied with several of the proposals on the table and Israel has said it would be unwilling to compromise on many points.
Three UN peacekeeps were injured in a blast in southern Lebanon, where Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire for weeks.
At least 19 people were killed in Gaza on Sunday, including a woman and her six children in a strike on their home, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
es/rc (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)