World

Gaza ceasefire negotiations appear to be in closing stages, senior US official says

The senior U.S. official said both Biden and Harris are “completely aligned” on U.S. policy toward Israel and Gaza.

Published

2 years ago

July 25, 2024

Negotiations on a ceasefire-for-hostages deal in the Gaza conflict appear to be in their closing stages and U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will discuss remaining gaps on Thursday, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.

The official, briefing reporters ahead of their talks, said the remaining obstacles are bridgeable and there will be more meetings aimed at reaching a deal between Israel and Hamas over the next week, Reuters reported.

Hamas-led fighters stormed into southern Israel on Oct.7, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 captives, according to Israeli tallies, triggering a war in which more than 38,000 people in Gaza have been killed.

Hamas and other militants are still holding 120 hostages; Israel believes around a third of them are dead.

Months of stop-and-start talks have failed to produce a deal to gain release of some of the remaining hostages.

The senior U.S. official said both Israel and Hamas still have some issues to resolve but that a deal is close in which a six-week ceasefire would take place in exchange for the release of women, elderly men and wounded hostages over a 42-day period, read the report.

“It’s a very different negotiation now than just a month ago when we had some fundamentally unbridgeable issues,” the official said.

Biden will hold talks with Netanyahu and then later in the day Vice President Kamala Harris will have a separate meeting with the Israeli leader.

Harris has taken over as the presumed Democratic choice for the November presidential election against Republican Donald Trump, after Biden opted not to seek reelection again under pressure from Democrats concerned about his mental acuity.

The senior U.S. official said both Biden and Harris are “completely aligned” on U.S. policy toward Israel and Gaza, Reuters reported.

“The Israelis will hear full alignment,” the official said.

Biden says Israel-Gaza war should end now and Israel must not occupy Gaza

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World

Fire at Saudi factory kills 16 Bangladeshi migrant workers

Published

17 hours ago

August 10, 2026

Ariana News

A major fire at a sofa manufacturing factory in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, ‌killed 16 Bangladeshi migrant workers, officials in Dhaka said on Monday.

The fire broke out on Sunday in the Musa Sanaiya industrial ⁠area, Reuters reported.

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is monitoring the situation, while officials from the Bangladesh Embassy in Riyadh are working with Saudi authorities to complete the repatriation formalities.

Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful ‌Haque ⁠Choudhury has instructed officials to bring back the bodies as soon as possible and ensure necessary government assistance and ⁠compensation for the bereaved families.

With around 3.5 million Bangladeshis living in Saudi ⁠Arabia, the country remains the largest destination for Bangladeshi migrant workers, ⁠who sent home more than $2.7 billion in remittances last year.

World

Israel rejects Trump’s 15-point plan for Gaza, PM Netanyahu says

Published

2 days ago

August 9, 2026

Ariana News

Israel has ‌rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board ⁠of Peace 15-point plan for Gaza, and will not withdraw ‌until ⁠Hamas fully disarms, Prime Minister ⁠Benjamin Netanyahu said on ⁠Sunday, Reuters reported.

World

Ex-U.S. President Biden’s cancer has spread, is very painful, son says

Published

2 days ago

August 9, 2026

Ariana News

Former U.S. President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has spread to other parts of his body and is causing him severe pain, his son Hunter Biden has said in an interview with the BBC.

“The cancer has spread, metastasized into his bones and further,” Hunter Biden told BBC’s Newsnight, according to video of the interview posted online on Friday. He described the illness as “very painful” and “very debilitating in many respects.”

A spokesperson for the 83-year-old Biden declined to comment on Hunter Biden’s remarks on Saturday.

Biden announced in May 2025, less than four months after leaving the White House, that he had been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer. At the time, he said the cancer had already spread to his bones.

In October, a spokesperson said Biden was receiving radiation treatment and hormone therapy.

Biden was the oldest person to be elected U.S. president when he won the 2020 election. His physical health and mental fitness also came under increased scrutiny during his presidency from 2021 to 2025.

Biden attended the dedication of former President Barack Obama’s presidential library in Chicago in June. He served as Obama’s vice president from 2009 to 2017.

Biden’s presidential memoir is scheduled to be released on November 17.