Israel, US share ‘common strategy’ on Gaza; truce talks set to resume

By Staff Reporter
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel and the US share a “common strategy” on Gaza’s future and hails President Donald Trump’s plan to forcibly displace Palestinians from the enclave.
Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, says talks on phase two of the Israel-Hamas truce will continue this week as Netanyahu’s office said Israeli negotiators would travel to Cairo on Monday to discuss extending the first phase of the ceasefire deal.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem says Israeli forces must withdraw completely from Lebanon by the February 18 deadline agreed in the truce brokered by the United States.
Gaza’s Health Ministry has confirmed 48,271 Palestinian deaths in Israel’s war on Gaza, while 111,693 people have been wounded. The Government Media Office has updated its death toll to at least 61,709 people, saying thousands missing under the rubble are now presumed dead.
At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack, and more than 200 were taken captive.