UAE backs mediators' call for resuming Gaza cease-fire talks next week

ISTANBUL

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday announced its support for calls by the US, Qatar and Egypt for resuming the Gaza cease-fire talks next week.

In a statement, UAE's Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan said his country "joins the call issued by" the leaders of Qatar, Egypt and the US "to conclude the cease-fire and hostages and detainees release deal."

He also urged the warring parties - Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group - "to respond to the call to resume urgent discussions on 15 August 2024."

"The agreement currently on the table would end the suffering of the people of Gaza and the hostages and their families," the UAE top diplomat added.

On Thursday evening, mediators from Egypt, Qatar, and the US urged Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas to resume talks in Doha or Cairo next week.

For months, Egypt, Qatar, and the US have been leading indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas, but no agreement has been reached due to Israel’s refusal to meet Hamas’ demands to end the war, withdraw troops from Gaza, and allow displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza.

Israel has continued a devastating military offensive in the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

Nearly 40,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 91,700 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar​​​​​​​