Recap

Good evening MEE readers. On Thursday, both delegations from Israel and Hamas left Cairo after the latest round of negotiations, with the current progress for a ceasefire in the war in Gaza at a standstill.

Sources familiar with the negotiations told MEE that Hamas did not entertain any changes to the proposal they accepted earlier this week after Israel walked away from the deal.

The sources said that Hamas was still committed to the deal proposed by mediators earlier in the week, but Hamas was leaving Cairo after two days of talks with mid-ranking Israeli officials that failed to yield a breakthrough.

Meanwhile, an Israeli official declared the talks over and said that Israel planned to proceed with its military operations in Rafah and elsewhere in Gaza.

Here's what else you need to know about today's developments:

• Hamas's armed wing said it detonated a booby-trapped tunnel in Rafah, as Israeli forces continued to attack the city in southern Gaza.

• The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-aligned militias, said it launched a drone strike on an Israeli military base.

• A group of Israeli settlers on Thursday launched several attacks on the headquarters of Unrwa in East Jerusalem, setting fire to the perimeter of the building. The attack forced the compound to shut down.

• The US performed another airdrop of humanitarian assistance over northern Gaza, this time doing it in coordination with Jordan's military.

• More than 1,600 Columbia University alumni signed a letter pledging to withhold "all financial, programmatic, and academic support" to the university until a list of 13 demands is met. Chief among those demands is divestment from companies profiting off of Israel's occupation.

• After US President Biden on Wednesday said the country could hold weapons transfers if Israel launches a full-scale invasion of Rafah, Israel's military spokesperson said it had enough munitions to go ahead with its operations.