Senior Hamas leader says they’re nearing ‘truce agreement’ with Israel

The senior political leader of Hamas says Israeli officials and the militant group are “close to reaching a truce agreement”.

Ismail Haniyeh says Hamas has delivered its response to Qatari officials, he told Reuters in a statement sent by his aide.

There were no further details about the terms of the potential agreement.

Qatar has been leading mediation between Israel and Hamas to negotiate the release of hostages.

Reuters previously reported the deal, coordinated with the United States, could see Israel release some Palestinian women and children from Israeli jails. 

UN update on humanitarian situation in Gaza

The UN humanitarian office in the occupied Palestinian territories has released its latest update on the crisis in the enclave. 

Here are some of the key developments: 

• Over 1.7 million people in Gaza are estimated to be internally displaced, including almost 900,000 IDPs who are staying in at least 154 UNRWA shelters.
• Over 15 per cent of the IDPs are estimated to have disabilities as of November 1, yet most shelters are not adequately equipped for their needs.
• Israeli operations at Shifa Hospital continued on November 20 for the fifth consecutive day. Nineteen health workers and 259 patients remain in Shifa, according to MoH in Gaza, as of November 19, facing critical shortages of power, water, and medical supplies.

Water and sanitation

• On November 19, UNRWA and UNICEF distributed 19,500 litres of fuel to water and sanitation facilities across the south, enabling them to operate generators and resume operations, more than a week after they had been forced to shut down. The fuel supplied during the day is expected to last for about 24 hours.
• In the north, grave concerns of dehydration and waterborne diseases due to water consumption from unsafe sources continues.

Two-state solution the ‘best guarantee

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says the establishment of a Palestinian state would be the best way of ensuring Israel’s security.

Mr Borrell held a video meeting Monday with foreign ministers from the EU’s 27 countries after touring the Middle East.

The EU’s top diplomat said he drew “a fundamental political conclusion” from his discussions across the region.

“I think that the best guarantee for Israel’s security is the creation of a Palestinian state,” Mr Borrell said.

He insists Israel should not occupy Gaza after the current conflict ends and control of the territory should be handed over to the Palestinian Authority.

In the short-term, Mr Borrell says there was a “sense of urgency” over the desperate humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Another major fear was the possibility of the conflict further enflaming volatile situation in the West Bank and dragging in other Middle Eastern actors.

ABC NEWS