Israel-Gaza updates: Blinken tells Israel onus is on Hamas to accept cease-fire
The 26-year-old was kidnapped from the Nova music festival.
As the Israel-Hamas war crosses the seven-month mark, negotiations are apparently stalled to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, and Israeli forces continue to launch incursions in the southern Gazan town of Rafah ahead of a possible large-scale invasion.
Latest headlines:
Israel makes new cease-fire proposal, now awaiting Hamas response
Israel put forward a new cease-fire proposal and hostage release deal on Monday, which has now been passed on to Hamas, an Egyptian security source told ABC News.
Mediators are awaiting a response from Hamas within 24 hours, the source said.
This is the first time Israel has taken the first move to submit a draft proposal since the war began, according to the source. Previous proposals have been initiated by Egyptian and Qatari mediators.
The source said talks could resume soon, without providing an exact timeline.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
'Tragic doesn't even begin to describe it,' Harris says of IDF strike in Rafah
Vice President Kamala Harris weighed in on the IDF strike in Rafah that killed 50 civilians and injured 249 more, saying, "The word 'tragic' doesn't even begin to describe it."
She did not comment when asked if this crosses a red line for the administration. President Joe Biden has yet to weigh in.
Aid for Gaza through pier paused after weather causes parts of port to detach: US official
The flow of humanitarian aid for Gaza over the U.S. Army’s temporary Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore (JLOTS) system has paused after rough seas caused parts of the pier to detach, a U.S. official told ABC News on Tuesday.
“Due to high sea states in the North African weather system earlier today, a portion of the Trident pier separated from the pier that is currently anchored into the coast of Gaza. As a result, the Trident pier was damaged, and sections of the pier need rebuilding and repairing,” she said.
The pier will be removed from its place near the Gazan coast and towed back to Ashdod “over the next 48 hours,” where U.S. Central Command will make repairs, according to Singh.
“The rebuilding and repairing of the pier will take at least over a week,” Singh said, adding that after repairs, it will need to be re-anchored to the Gazan shore.
-ABC News’ Matt Seyler
IDF says fire was the cause of civilians' lives lost in Rafah strike
Remarking on the deadly Rafah strike that killed 50 Palestinians and injured 249 others, the Israel Defense Forces said “a fire ignited tragically taking the lives of Gazan civilians nearby,” in a statement Tuesday.
“Sadly, following the strike, due to unforeseen circumstances, a fire ignited tragically taking the lives of Gazan civilians nearby. Despite our efforts to minimize civilian casualties during the strike, the fire that broke out was unexpected and unintended,” IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said.
“This is a devastating incident which we did not expect. We are investigating what caused the fire that resulted in this tragic loss of life,” he added.
Hagari said earlier that the strike had killed the two Hamas commanders they targeted.
-ABC News’ Dana Savir
Egyptian source denies Israeli claim of tunnels in the Philadelphi corridor
A high-level Egyptian source denied Israeli reports about the existence of tunnels on the Egyptian border with Gaza, Egyptian state-run Al-Qahera News said.
The source dismissed the reports as “lies” promoted by Israel to "cover up its military failure." It added that there were "no communications with the Israeli side" regarding the allegations.
There has been no official comment from Cairo since the announcement.
Egypt has over the past decade destroyed hundreds of smuggling tunnels along its eastern border with Gaza as part of its fight against Islamist militants in its border Sinai region.
Egyptian officials have said a potential Israeli takeover of Philadelphi, a largely demilitarized buffer zone along the Gaza-Egypt border, could violate the 1979 peace deal between Egypt and Israel.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy