OAN Staff Blake Wolf
9:18 AM – Saturday, May 17, 2025
A new round of Gaza ceasefire talks have begun in Doha, Qatar, according to a Hamas official.
Hamas official Taher al-Nono stated that the two sides were walking into the negotiations without any “pre-conditions.”
Speaking with Reuters, the Hamas terrorist went on to state that the terror group is “keen to exert all the effort needed” in order to hold successful negotiations, noting that there is “no certain offer on the table.”
Meanwhile, at least 140 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza within the last 24 hours, amidst Israel launching a new “major offensive” operation in the Gaza Strip, dubbed “Gideon’s Chariots.”
“In the past day the IDF has launched extensive attacks and mobilized forces to seize strategic areas in the Gaza Strip, as part of the opening moves of Operation Gideon’s Chariots and the expansion of the campaign in Gaza, to achieve all the goals of the war in Gaza, including the release of the hostages and the defeat of Hamas,” the Israeli military announced.
President Donald Trump ended his tour in the Middle East on Friday. The Trump administration was able to request the release of Eden Alexander, an Israeli-American IDF soldier who was taken hostage on October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel killing around 1,200 while capturing 251 more.
Barak Ravid, an IDF veteran and Axios reporter announced in a Thursday post on X that “US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by phone with Prime Minister Netanyahu and told him that the Trump administration is concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza.”
The reported concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza is due to Tel Aviv imposing a total blockade on all goods and aid entering the Strip since March, leading to widespread starvation.
“We’re looking at Gaza, and we got to get that taken care of. A lot of people are starving,” Trump stated on Friday. “A lot of people. There’s a lot of bad things going on.”
Just the day prior, President Trump reiterated his previous call for the U.S. to get directly involved in taking the Gaza Strip over.
“I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good: Make it a freedom zone. Let the United States get involved, and make it just a freedom zone,” Trump stated on Thursday. “I’d be proud to have the United States have it, take it, make it a freedom zone, let some good things happen. Put people in homes where they can be safe, and Hamas is going to have to be dealt with.”
Arab leaders have also called on the international community to apply pressure towards a ceasefire in Gaza, and the entrance of humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory.
“We call on the international community… to exert pressure to end the bloodshed and ensure that urgent humanitarian aid can enter without obstacles all areas in need in Gaza,” the Arab leaders stated in a joint statement following a summit in Baghdad.
The summit was attended by Arab leaders including Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, along with Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.
El-Sissi stated during the meeting that “a lasting, just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East will remain elusive unless a Palestinian state is established in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions.”
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