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This picture taken from the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip shows destroyed buildings in the northern Gaza Strip on Jan. 14, 2025. (Credit: Jack Guez/AFP)

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'The ball is in Hamas' court' for truce in Gaza, says Blinken | Live

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Israeli tanks continue to circulate in Aitaroun and Meis al-Jabal. 

The Israeli army says it "probably" intercepted a projectile coming from Yemen. 

Armed clashes along the border between Lebanon and Syria, in the Hermel region, left two people injured. 

20:50 Beirut Time

Gaza

Hamas has not delivered its response to mediators yet because Israel did not submit maps of its forces' withdrawal from Gaza, a Hamas official told Reuters on Tuesday.

18:54 Beirut Time

Gaza

Israel must accept a path towards the creation of a Palestinian state that is subject to a timetable and conditions, stressed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

“Israel will have to accept the reunification of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank under the leadership of a reformed Palestinian Authority,” said Blinken. “All will have to commit to the path of forming an independent Palestinian state, respecting the conditions and deadlines set.”

18:37 Beirut Time

Gaza

“The ball is in Hamas's court” to conclude an agreement on a truce in the Gaza Strip, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

“If Hamas accepts it, the agreement is ready to be concluded and implemented,” said Blinken a few hours after Qatar claimed that talks on the agreement were in the "final stage."

18:36 Beirut Time

The remains of six people killed by Israeli strikes were retrieved by rescue teams from the Civil Defense, in cooperation with the Lebanese Army, our correspondent in the South reported. Three remains from Tayr Harfa (Sour) were transported to Jabal Amal Hospital for DNA testing and three bodies retrieved from Khiam (Marjayoun) were transferred to Marjayoun Government Hospital for identification.

Our correspondent reported that the Civil Defense is continuing its operations in the affected areas, coordinating with the Lebanese Army to locate all missing persons.

18:30 Beirut Time

Palestinian Islamic Jihad said in a statement on Tuesday that a delegation representing the group would travel to Doha to participate in finalizing the details of a cease-fire agreement in Gaza.

18:25 Beirut Time

South Lebanon

The Israeli army carried out a major explosion and dynamited residential houses in the Moufaylha area, west of Mais al-Jabal (Marjayoun), according to our correspondent.

Detonations were heard and smoke billowed from the area.

18:25 Beirut Time

South Lebanon

The detonations heard earlier in Aitaroun (Bint Jbeil) were due to Israeli strikes on Kfar Kila (Marjayoun), the echo of which resounded in the neighboring villages, according to our correspondent in the region.

17:37 Beirut Time

South Lebanon

Five explosions were heard in Aitaroun (Bint Jbeil) within an hour, according to our correspondent in the South.

15:46 Beirut Time

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas appeared within reach.

"We understand how painful any agreement with the Hamas terrorist organization is for Israel. Nevertheless, the lives of the hostages must now take top priority," he said in a statement. Scholz added that the deal offered the possibility of alleviating suffering in Gaza.

15:37 Beirut Time

(Photo provided by L'Orient Today's correspondent Muntasser Abdallah)

Hezbollah and residents of Khreibeh (Bekaa) bid farewell to one of the slain members of the Shiite party, Abbas Mohammad Qassem, during a funeral procession.

Hezbollah supporters threw flowers and rice on the coffin, before repeating honorary rituals. Clerics, politicians and residents of nearby villages took part in the procession, led by scouts and local officials.

15:29 Beirut Time

Two explosions were heard in Meis al-Jabal (Marjayoun) this afternoon, following detonations carried out by Israeli soldiers in the village, according to L'Orient Today's correspondent in south Lebanon.

An Israeli grenade exploded during construction work in the town of Doueir (Nabatieh), causing two minor injuries.

Israeli fighter jets flew low over Beirut and the southern suburbs this afternoon, the state-run National News Agency (NNA) also reported.

14:48 Beirut Time

"The aggression in Gaza must stop immediately, this catastrophe must end immediately – the success of the Doha negotiations is a fundamental step in this direction," Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said at a joint press conference with his Danish counterpart Lars Lokke Rasmussen, according to a statement released by his ministry on X.

14:34 Beirut Time

Hamas said it hoped that indirect negotiations with Israel underway in Doha would result in "a clear and comprehensive agreement" after more than 15 months of war in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas said in a statement that it had informed the Palestinian factions of the progress of the ongoing discussions in Doha, which are in "the final phase," hoping that "this round of negotiations will end with a clear and complete agreement."

13:49 Beirut Time

The health ministry in Gaza announced that at least 61 people had been killed in the past 24 hours in the Palestinian territory.

This brings the total death toll to 46,645, it said in a statement, adding that 110,012 people had also been injured in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war, triggered by an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

13:48 Beirut Time

Two Palestinian sources close to Hamas-led negotiations for a truce in the Gaza Strip told AFP that around 1,000 Palestinian prisoners would be released in the first phase of a cease-fire deal, in exchange for 33 hostages.

"Israel will release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including several with long sentences," one of the sources said. These statements echo information given to journalists by an Israeli government official on condition of anonymity, according to which "several hundred terrorists would be released" during the first phase of the truce in the Palestinian territory.

13:03 Beirut Time

Qatar, the mediator, says the "main issues" blocking a deal have been resolved between Hamas and Israel. 

13:01 Beirut Time

In a statement published on its website on Sunday, the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, based in Turkey, denied, during a meeting in Damascus with the new Syrian administration, "having discussed issues related to quotas or positions." 

"The meeting reaffirmed its support for the transitional government's efforts to achieve security, civil peace and stability," the National Coalition said on its website. It also said it "presented its vision of the role of political institutions, social entities and civil society" in the Syria of tomorrow.

The coalition is a political alliance formed in 2012, comprising various opposition groups that sought to end the rule of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and establish a democratic and inclusive government.

12:55 Beirut Time

Qatar says talks on a truce are in the "final stages" and hopes for an agreement "very soon," according to AFP. 

12:55 Beirut Time

The first phase of a truce deal in the Gaza Strip currently being negotiated in Qatar would see the release of 33 Israeli hostages, according to sources close to the negotiations and Israeli media.

Two sources close to the negotiations told AFP that the first phase included the release of 33 hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The Times of Israel newspaper, citing Israeli officials, also said that "the first phase of the agreement would include 33 humanitarian cases."

According to one of the two sources close to the negotiations, "the first phase of the agreement provides for the release of 33 Israeli hostages in groups, starting with children and women."

"If the first phase is implemented, then on the 16th day after the implementation of the agreement, Israel will begin negotiations on a second phase with a view to the release of the remaining hostages, namely the soldiers, the men of draft age and the bodies of the dead hostages," the newspaper added.

12:17 Beirut Time

Syria's foreign minister announced that he would travel to Turkey tomorrow, Wednesday, his first official trip to the country since President Bashar al-Assad was ousted by Islamist rebels just over a month ago.

"We will represent the new Syria tomorrow in the first official visit to the Turkish Republic, which has not abandoned the Syrian people for fourteen years," Foreign Minister Assaad al-Shaibani said on the social network X on Tuesday.

Turkey-backed armed groups fighting Bashar al-Assad's forces after the start of the civil war in 2011, sparked by the violent repression of anti-government protests.

12:12 Beirut Time

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk arrived in Damascus and is expected to travel to Lebanon next, as part of a planned visit to the region from Jan. 14-16, according to a U.N. statement.

Turk is scheduled to meet with officials, as well as representatives of civil society organizations, members of the diplomatic corps and U.N. entities. This is the first visit by a U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights to Syria, and the second such visit to Lebanon after that of the U.N. human rights chief in 2002, the text said.

12:11 Beirut Time

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in a video posted on X that the potential hostage deal “is horrible” because it “erases” Israel’s achievements during the war, according to Haaretz. Ben-Gvir said the deal “not only does not lead to the release of all the hostages, but it also seals the fate of the remaining hostages.”

"I call on my colleague, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, to join me in fully cooperating against this horrible deal ... and to tell the prime minister, clearly and firmly, that if it is concluded, we will resign from the government," he said. 

10:42 Beirut Time

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10:42 Beirut Time

A "final round" of talks for a truce between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is due to begin in Qatar to end more than 15 months of war in the Palestinian territory, a source close to the negotiations told AFP.

"A final round of talks is expected to take place today (Tuesday) in Doha," between the heads of Israeli intelligence agencies, American mediators and the Qatari prime minister on one side, and the mediators and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on the other, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity, with a view to "finalizing the last details of the agreement."

10:42 Beirut Time

Overnight, Joe Biden said a truce agreement in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas was "on the verge" of being concluded, following similar comments from his national security adviser.

"We are on the verge of seeing a proposal that I laid out in detail several months ago finally come to fruition," the American president said during a speech on his diplomatic record at the State Department, affirming that his administration was working "urgently to conclude this agreement," a week before handing over to Donald Trump. The Democrat said that he would speak "soon" with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, after having already held conversations with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, on Monday, and with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday.

"We are close to an agreement and we can get it done this week," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan had said shortly before.

This is not the first time the Biden administration has assured that a deal is close, but these statements are the most optimistic recently heard from American officials.

Egypt and Qatar are mediating indirect talks aimed at freeing the 94 hostages held in Gaza, 34 of whom the army says have died, and ending hostilities.

10:42 Beirut Time

A statement signed by residents of the town of Aitaroun called on residents "not to head towards the village and to take precautions," after "the dawn entry of Israeli tanks" into the area, where the Lebanese army was supposed to be deployed.

"Bulldozers cut the roads with mounds of sand, while soldiers threw sound bombs and fired automatic weapons inside the village," the statement said.

The municipality of Aitaroun announced on Sunday that the Lebanese army would soon retake two of its positions in the village and that "the permanent return of the inhabitants will be set in the coming days." The same day, a statement from the local authorities of Meis al-Jabal had called on the inhabitants "not to venture out and to follow the directives of the Lebanese army," while waiting to be able to return to the village "soon."

10:42 Beirut Time

L'Orient Today's correspondent reported that machine gun fire and movements of Israeli tanks and military vehicles took place Tuesday morning in the areas of Mfailha and Ras al-Daher, west of Meis al-Jabal (Marjayoun), a village shelled almost daily by the Israeli army during the war.

10:42 Beirut Time

The Israeli army announced early this morning that it had "probably intercepted" a missile fired from Yemen, after reporting the neutralization of another projectile from the same country the day before.

"Following sirens that sounded in a number of areas in central Israel, several attempts were made to intercept a missile launched from Yemen," the army said in a statement at around 3:30 a.m. local time. "The missile was likely intercepted," it added, indicating that no injuries or damage had been reported.

Later, Yemen's Houthi rebels said they had fired "a Palestine-2 hypersonic ballistic missile," in a statement posted on Telegram.

10:42 Beirut Time

The Lebanese army sent reinforcements to the border town of Hosh al-Sayed Ali (Hermel), after clashes between residents of this town and armed individuals from the neighboring Syrian villages of Masrieh and Nahrieh, according L'Orient Today's correspondent.

The incident took place on Monday evening between gangs that were stealing livestock in the village of Hosh al-Sayed Ali and residents who confronted them, helped by clans from the region, according to some versions. This incident did not involve Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham militiamen. The clashes, which lasted for an hour and during which light and medium weapons as well as rockets were used, left two people injured on the Syrian side.