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A Hamas official called the October 7 attack a ‘historic response’ to Israel’s bid to ‘eradicate the Palestinian cause’; he also said group was working to ‘surmount all obstacles’ to sealing a deal in Egypt; Trump says there is a ‘real chance’ to end war
Solemn vigil: People visit the Nova music festival memorial site on the second anniversary of the Hamas attack in Israel on Tuesday.
Agence France-Presse
Jerusalem
Israel marked the second anniversary of the October 7 attack on Tuesday, as Hamas and Israeli negotiators held indirect talks aimed at ending the war in Gaza under a U.S.-proposed peace plan, with U.S. President Donald Trump voicing optimism about a deal.
Two years ago to the day, Hamas launched the deadliest attack on Israel in the country’s history, sparking a huge retaliatory offensive in Gaza.
Shocking assault
The attack shocked the world, with Palestinian fighters breaching the Gaza-Israel border, and storming southern Israeli communities and a desert music festival with gunfire, rockets and grenades.
It resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians. Militants also took 251 people hostage into Gaza, of whom 47 remain captive, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead. On Tuesday, senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum called the October 7 attack a “historic response” to Israel’s bid to “eradicate the Palestinian cause”. Two years on, global pressure to end the war has escalated, with much of Gaza flattened, a UN-declared famine unfolding and Israeli families still longing for their loved ones’ return.
Accusations of genocide
A UN probe last month accused Israel of genocide in Gaza while rights groups have accused Hamas of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the October 7 attack. Both sides reject the allegations.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday voiced optimism in ending the Gaza war.
“There’s a real chance that we could do something,” Mr. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I think there’s a possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East. It’s something even beyond the Gaza situation.”
Last week, Mr. Trump unveiled a 20-point peace plan calling for a ceasefire, the release of all the hostages, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. The plan received positive responses from both Israel and Hamas and prompted talks in Egypt, with negotiators beginning indirect discussions on Monday. On Wednesday, Mr. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff will join the talks, according to Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.
In Israel, relatives and friends of those killed at the Nova music festival lit candles and held a minute’s silence at the site of the attack.
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Q1. How did the present violence between Hamas and Israel start? State the date and time of its start.
Q2. What losses Israel suffer in the first two days of Hamas attack on it?
Q3. How did Israel react? Since then what losses the Palestinians in Gaza have suffered?
Q4. How has the international community reacted to the ongoing violence in Gaza?
Q5. How is President Trump trying to end the conflict?
Q6. Make sentences with Long as adjective, Long as verb, Bid as a noun, Bid as verb, Eradicate, Storm as noun, Storm as verb, Voice as noun, Voice as verb, Seal as noun, Seal as verb, Breach as noun, Breach as verb, Veil as noun, Unveil as verb, Flat as adjective, Flatten as verb,
Q7. What is meant by ‘committing war crimes’ and ‘crimes against humanity’? (Refer Google.