 "Amid talks for Gaza peace, Israel’s Ben Gvir prays at Temple Mount ‘for destruction of Hamas’")
Israel’s National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, on Wednesday visited the revered Temple Mount to pray for “the destruction of Hamas” as the country holds indirect talks with Hamas in Egypt over Gaza ceasefire.
Earlier this morning, the far-right minister was spotted praying at the Western Wall alongside fellow Otzma Yehudit lawmakers, MKs Amichai Eliyahu and Limor Son Har-Melech.
Meanwhile, a US delegation led by Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff is slated to join the indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Egypt on Wednesday, after both sides had a “productive” first round of talks.
The discussions on the Gaza ceasefire are being held in Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian resort city on the Red Sea, as they entered a second day on the second anniversary of Hamas’s October 7 attack.
Last week, US President Donald Trump announced a 20-point Gaza peace plan, which was quickly accepted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but was met with some opposition by Hamas before they came to terms with it.
Trump has voiced optimism that there was a “real chance” to end the war in Gaza, as Israel remembered victims of the October 7 attacks two years ago on Tuesday.
“There’s a real chance that we could do something,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, adding that US negotiators were also involved in the talks.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“I think there’s a possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East.”
Trump said the United States would do “everything possible to make sure everyone adheres to the deal” if Hamas and Israel do agree on a ceasefire.
The Palestinian terror group’s top negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, has said that Hamas is seeking guarantees from Trump and the sponsor countries that the “war will end once and for all”.
Senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum called the October 7 attack a “historic response” to Israel’s bid to “eradicate the Palestinian cause”.
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