Truce Ends, Conflict Resumes; Qatar Says Negotiations Ongoing

The temporary truce between Israel and Hamas that had been in place since 23 November has come to an end amid Hamas rockets fired into Israel and Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) resuming their aerial strikes and ground assault on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Each side has accused the other of breaking the truce, Hamas claiming that Israel refused to send fuel to north Gaza under the terms of the agreement, while IDF spox Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the the BBC that "Hamas did not stand to their word, of their agreement, to release all the women and children,"

• At the COP28 summit in the UAE, Israeli President Issac Herzog was seen to shake hands with the Emir of Qatar. Wire reports claim that Qatari officials have stated that negotiations involving Qatar, the US, Israel and Hamas are still ongoing.
• It could prove more problematic to reach another truce given that the majority of the ~140 hostages now held by Hamas are men or IDF personnel, with reports stating that Hamas is disinclined to release them under the same agreement that saw other hostages, mainly women and children, returned to Israel.