Israel-Gaza updates: Kerem Shalom crossing closed to aid after rockets fired from Rafah, IDF says
The IDF said several people were injured Sunday.
As the Israel-Hamas war approaches the seven-month mark, renewed negotiations are underway to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, as Israeli forces continue to prepare for an apparent invasion of the southern Gaza town of Rafah.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke in a phone call over the weekend, discussing increasing the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza and plans for a possible military operation in Rafah, according to the White House.
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Hamas says negotiations in Cairo have concluded
Hamas said Sunday that negotiations in Cairo have concluded and that its delegation will leave Cairo tonight.
Israeli defense minister signals 'action in Rafah and the entire Gaza Strip in the near future'
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant toured part of the Gaza Strip on Sunday before speaking with reserve fighters in the division's brigades, Israel's Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
"We recognize alarming signs that Hamas actually does not intend to go to any outline agreement with us, the meaning of this -- action in Rafah and the entire Gaza Strip in the near future," Gallant said, in part.
Israel shuts Kerem Shalom crossing to humanitarian aid after rockets fired from Rafah, IDF says
Several people were injured Sunday and sent to the hospital after approximately 10 "projectile launches" crossed from an area adjacent to the Rafah crossing toward Kerem Shalom on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces said.
The Kerem Shalom crossing is now closed to humanitarian aid trucks, the IDF said.
According to the IDF, Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Netanyahu says Israel won't agree to Hamas' demands
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke Sunday regarding the talks for the release of hostages, claiming Hamas is "preventing the release of our abductees."
"Israel was and still is ready to make a truce in the fighting to free our abductees. This is what we did when we released 124 hostages, and returned to fight -- and this is what we are ready to do today," he said Sunday in comments translated from Hebrew.
Throughout negotiations, Israel has "demonstrated a willingness to go a long way," Netanyahu said, adding that Hamas "remained entrenched in its extreme positions, chief among them the demand to withdraw all our forces from the Strip, end the war and leave Hamas intact."
Netanyahu said Israel "cannot accept this," and that "surrendering to the demands of Hamas would be a terrible defeat."
"Therefore, Israel will not agree to Hamas's demands, which mean surrender, and will continue the fighting until all its goals are achieved," he added.
Netanyahu's comments come a day after an Israeli official told ABC News that Israel will not agree to end the war as part of any potential deal.
Meanwhile, Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas' political bureau, said Sunday that Hamas is keen on reaching a comprehensive cease-fire that "ends the aggression, guarantees withdrawal, and achieves a serious prisoner exchange deal."
-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Nasser Atta
Blinken visits Gaza border crossing
Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a previously unannounced visit Wednesday to the Kerem Shalom border crossing, ​becoming the first cabinet-level U.S. official to visit the border of Gaza since the Oct. 7 attacks.
Blinken attended a closed briefing on humanitarian assistance and deconfliction while he was at the site, which was shuttered for more than two months after the attacks.
Blinken was able to look into Gaza from the top of the massive concrete wall, according to pool reporters.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
