Israel-Hamas war: US halted arms shipment over Rafah concerns

05/08/2024May 8, 2024

Israel reopens Kerem Shalom border crossing

The Israeli military said it reopened the Kerem Shalom border crossing in the south of the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

"Trucks from Egypt carrying humanitarian aid, including food, water, shelter equipment, medicine and medical equipment donated by the international community, are already arriving at the crossing," the army said in a joint statement with COGAT, the Defense Ministry body that oversees Palestinian civil affairs.

It added that the supplies would be transferred to the Gaza side of the crossing after undergoing inspection.

The border crossing was closed on Sunday after a Hamas rocket attack killed four Israeli soldiers in the area.

Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by the US, EU, Israel and others.

On Tuesday, Israeli troops took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

05/08/2024May 8, 2024

Cease-fire conditions being finalized, US says

A White House spokesperson has expressed guarded optimism that Israel and Hamas "should be able to close the remaining gaps" of a cease-fire deal that would lead to the release of hostages.

"Hamas responded ... and there were amendments offered," White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.

"Again, that's the task of negotiating. That's what negotiations are all about. It's our understanding from looking at the text that we feel it suggests that we should be able to close these gaps."

Separately, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in Washington that the draft under discussion was an offer made at the end of April.

"That's the offer that was on the table," he said. 

"Hamas seemed to make clear ... in their public statements that they accepted that offer yesterday (Monday). That is not what they did. They responded with amendments — call it a counter proposal if you want — and we're working through the details of that now."

05/08/2024May 8, 2024

US halted bomb shipment to Israel over Rafah concerns

The US paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that they could be used in an assault on the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, according to a senior Biden administration official.

The official said the administration "began to carefully review proposed transfers of particular weapons to Israel that might be used in Rafah" beginning in April.

"As a result of that review, we have paused one shipment of weapons last week," the official told reporters.

These weapons consisted of 1,800 bombs with a nominal weight of 2,000 lbs (900 kilograms) and 1,700 bombs with a nominal weight of 500 lbs (225 kilograms).

It marks the first time the US has acted on a warning that President Joe Biden made to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month that US policy on Gaza would depend on how Israel treated civilians.

More than 1 million Palestinian civilians have sought shelter in Rafah after evacuating from other parts of the Gaza Strip amid Israel's military offensive. Israel launched its assault on Gaza in response to the October 7 terror attack by Hamas militants.

"We are especially focused on the end-use of the 2,000-lb bombs and the impact they could have in dense urban settings as we have seen in other parts of Gaza," the official said.

"We have not made a final determination on how to proceed with this shipment," they added.

zc/nm (AP, Reuters, AFP, dpa)