Mourners gather for the funeral of Taleb Abdallah, known as Abu Taleb, a senior field commander of Hezbollah who was killed in what security forces say was an Israel strike, in Beirut's southern suburbs on Wednesday — AFP NEW YORK, June 12 (BBC/AFP): The US says it is evaluating the Hamas response to the latest proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. The Palestinian armed group said it was ready to "deal positively" with the process but stressed the need for Israel to agree to a permanent ceasefire.
Israel's government has not commented, but an anonymous Israeli official said Hamas's response amounted to a rejection.
Meanwhile, the US secretary of state is heading to Qatar - which along with the US and Egypt is acting as a mediator - to try to push the plan forward.
Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had "reaffirmed his commitment" to the deal, and that Hamas would be to blame if there was no progress.
However, Mr Netanyahu has not publicly endorsed the proposal, which US President Joe Biden said had been offered by Israel when he outlined it 12 days ago.
A brief statement confirmed Hamas had given an official response to the latest ceasefire plan, which has garnered broad international support and was endorsed by the UN Security Council on Monday.
This reiterated a demand for what Hamas called "a complete halt of the ongoing aggression against Gaza", and full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Palestinian territory.
A Hamas official, Izzat al-Rishq, said the response was "responsible, serious and positive" and that it opened up "a wide pathway" to reach an agreement.
The Israeli prime minister's office did not release an on-record reply.
Blinken arrives in Qatar for
talks with Gaza mediator
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken touched down in Doha on Wednesday for talks with key mediator Qatar after Hamas gave its response to a US-led proposal for a ceasefire in war-ravaged Gaza.
Blinken, on a four-country swing around the Middle East to push Hamas to accept the truce plan, will meet the top leadership in the gas-rich Gulf state, which has transmitted messages to the Palestinian militant group.
Hamas, responding to the plan laid out on May 31 by President Joe Biden, proposed amendments late Tuesday including a ceasefire timeline and the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, according to a source familiar with the talks.
Israel, Hamas accused of war
crimes in new UN report
Israel and Hamas have been accused of committing a litany of war crimes and human rights abuses since 7 October in a new independent report to the UN Human Rights Council.
The damning accusations, compiled by investigators from the UN's Commission of Inquiry, accused both sides of war crimes for mounting attacks against civilian populations and "murder or wilful killings".
The report, which covers the period up to the end of 2023, specifically accused Israel of crimes against humanity for torture, "extermination" and "gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys".
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