Democratic views on how President Joe Biden is handling the decades-old conflict between Israelis and Palestinians have rebounded slightly, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
The shift occurred during a time in which Biden and top U.S. officials expressed increased concern about civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip, emphasized the need for a future independent Palestinian state and helped secure the release of hostages held by Hamas during a temporary truce.
Fifty-nine percent of Democrats approve of Biden’s approach to the conflict, a tick up from 50% in November. His latest standing is roughly equivalent to Democrats’ 57% approval rating for him on the issue in an August poll, conducted well before the latest war began on Oct. 7 when Hamas attacked Israel.
Still, the issue remains divisive among Democrats, who are less enthusiastic about Biden’s handling of the war than his overall job performance. Seventy-five percent of Democrats said Biden is doing well as president, also up slightly from 69% last month. His approval rating among U.S. adults stands at 41%.
https://www.axios.com/2023/12/01/gaza-ceasefire-collapse-israel-hostages
From the article:
Driving the news: According to the ceasefire agreement, Hamas committed to releasing all the women and children it was holding hostage in exchange for a pause in fighting for up to nine days. More than 80 women and children were released over the last week as part of this process.
Yes, but: In the hours leading to the end of the pause, Hamas did not send a list of hostages it would release, the three Israeli officials said.
Instead, Hamas sent messages through Qatari and Egyptian mediators proposing to start a discussion on what concessions Israel would be willing to give in return for the release of elderly men, the officials added. Behind the scenes: The Israeli officials said Israel made it clear to the mediators that it knows Hamas still has several women in its custody and that it would not discuss future deals before all the women were released.
Mossad chief David Barnea, the lead negotiator on the Israeli side, sent a message to Hamas through the mediators on Thursday night that stressed Israel was “not playing games” and that if the women were not released, the fighting would resume, a senior Israeli official said. Not long after that Hamas launched a rocket from Gaza for the first time since the pause started. An hour later the ceasefire completely broke down. The U.S. has also publicly blamed Hamas for the collapse of the ceasefire. The other side: Hamas official Osama Hamdan told Al-Araby news channel that Israel was responsible for the failure. He said that the women Israel proposed to be released included female IDF soldiers.
Hamdan added that Israel refused any other offer made. Hamas in a statement said it had offered to release elderly men and two Israeli hostages, as well as the bodies of hostages it said were killed during Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. The bodies included a mother and her two children, the statement added. Hamas said it offered to release the father of the children so that he could attend their funeral.
Violence during ceasefire:
Eighteen Palestinians have been killed and at least 20 others injured by the Israel Defence Forces during an hours-long daytime raid on Jenin city and its refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
In the latest escalation in violence on the West Bank, occurring against the background of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, the IDF said an airstrikehit an armed squad of men in the city.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/10/israeli-forces-kill-palestinians-in-daytime-raid-in-west-bank?utm_source=pocket_mylist
AP reports that Israeli troops fatally shot two Palestinians and wounded 11 others as they headed toward [their homes in] the main combat zone in northern Gaza despite warnings by the Israeli army to stay put.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20231124-israel-shoots-at-displaced-palestinians-trying-to-return-home-to-north-gaza/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/2-palestinians-killed-11-wounded-trying-to-reach-north-gaza-despite-idf-warnings-ap/