Netanyahu accused by Hamas of 'thwarting' Gaza ceasefire

Palestinian militant group Hamas has accused Israel's leader of setting "traps and tricks" to drag out talks aimed at achieving a ceasefire in Gaza. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again said that Israel will not withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor in southern Gaza as part of any deal, until there is a guarantee it can never be used as a supply line for Hamas. 

"People said 'If you stay, this will kill the deal', but such a deal will kill us," he told reporters in Jerusalem.  

But in a statement Hamas accused Netanyahu of "using negotiations to prolong the aggression against our people", and appealed for more international pressure to be put on Israel over its position.     

The corridor on Gaza's southern border with Egypt, including the Rafah crossing, was seized in May by Israel, which claims it is being used as a base for Hamas fighters.

The U.S. is expected to present a "final offer" soon, aimed at breaking the ongoing deadlock between both sides. Washington says it will release the new proposals "over the coming days" along with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar, aimed at achieving a pause in the fighting and a hostage release. Palestinian group leaders, by contrast, said a previous offer put forward by Washington on July 2 should stand. 

The U.S. has announced criminal charges against some of the top leaders of Hamas, for their role in the events of October 7. 

Five people were killed when an Israeli airstrike targeted a car on the West Bank on Wednesday. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said one other person was seriously hurt. The Israeli military said its aircraft had "conducted three targeted strikes on armed terrorists" in the town of Tubas. 

Meanwhile, Israeli military conducted an overnight raid on the West Bank. Troops stormed the Faraa refugee camp in Tubas governorate. Sixteen Palestinians were arrested and eyewitnesses reported explosions on the ground. 

Lebanon's health ministry said one person was killed and one wounded in an Israeli cross border raid. Local media claimed Israeli aircraft targeted an area near between the towns of Kafra and Siddiqin in southern Lebanon with "severe damage" reported to property. 

The second phase of polio vaccination is underway in Gaza. The World Health Organization says it plans to vaccinate more than 187,000 children under the age of ten. The next round of treatments will focus on youngsters in southern Gaza.

The United Nations refugee agency in Palestine insisted that Israel must allow the international press back into Gaza Strip. UNRWA head Phillipe Lazzarini added that Palestinian journalists who have reported from the frontline of the conflict "continue to hold the torch, despite far too many of them having been killed." 

More than 120 Palestinian journalists and media workers have died since the offensive in Gaza began last year, with a further 50 arrested.