Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said Saturday that lockdowns meant to curb the spread of the pandemic could lead to street protests over economic problems, his website reported.
In a regular Cabinet meeting on the coronavirus, Rouhani said the easiest way to fight the virus is to close off all activities. But “then people come and stage protests because of chaos, famine and problems," he said.
Confirmed virus cases and deaths reached a record low in May after mass lockdowns were imposed in Iran. But since then, the numbers have spiked again, with officials saying a combination of improved testing and re-openings has driven the surge.
Rouhani urged that ceremonies be held with a limited number of participants. Many experts blame an increase in virus-related deaths over the past week on wedding and funeral ceremonies with large crowds.
Ali Reza Zali, the head of Tehran's virus task force, in a letter to officials banned any conferences, festivals or exhibitions and limited participants in wedding and funeral ceremonies to 10.
Earlier this week, Iran reported 221 fatalities in a 24-hour period, the highest single-day death toll.
Rouhani's remarks came as many experts urged a halt to business activities to stop the increase in virus related deaths that have exceeded 12,600 out of 255,117 confirmed cases.
Iranian officials have been particularly eager to remove restrictions on its economy, already crippled by sanctions the U.S. imposed after the Trump administration’s 2018 withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement.
A sharp rise in subsidized gasoline prices led to four days of unrest in cities and towns across Iran in November, which rights group Amnesty International said led to more than 300 people being killed in clashes with police and security forces.
Tehran has yet to release any official statistics about the scale of the unrest, though in June the government acknowledged that the security forces shot and killed protesters and a lawmaker said that 230 people were killed in the anti-government protests.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Israel on Wednesday to press for a cease-fire deal in the Israel-Hamas war, saying “ the time is now ” and warning that Hamas would bear the blame for any failure to reach an agreement to halt the war in Gaza.
Blinken greeted the families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza who were protesting outside a meeting between him and Israel's president, telling them that setting their loved ones free was “at the heart of everything we’re trying to do.”
On his seventh visit since the latest war between Israel and Hamas broke out in October, Blinken is trying to advance a truce that would free hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a halt to the fighting and delivery of much needed food, medicine and water into Gaza. Palestinian prisoners are also expected to be released as part of the deal.
The U.S. has pressured Israel to increase aid deliveries during the war, and on Tuesday, Israel reopened a border crossing with the hard-hit northern Gaza Strip for the first time since it was damaged at the start of the war.
On Oct. 7, Palestinian militants launched an unprecedented attack into southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting around 250 hostages. Israel says militants still hold around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.
Nearly seven months of Israeli bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza have killed more than 34,500 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and sparked a humanitarian catastrophe. The war has driven around 80% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million from their homes, caused vast destruction in several towns and cities and pushed northern Gaza to the brink of famine.
Currently:
— Live updates: Police crack down on U.S. college protests against the war in Gaza.
— Blinken urges Israel and Hamas to move ahead with a cease-fire deal and says ‘the time is now.’
— Lebanese Christian leader says Hezbollah’s fighting with Israel has harmed Lebanon.
— Dueling protesters clash at UCLA hours after police clear pro-Palestinian protesters from Columbia University
— A Portuguese-flagged ship is hit far in Arabian Sea, raising concerns over Houthi rebel capabilities.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Here's the latest:
EREZ CROSSING, Israel — Israel has reopened a border crossing to allow increased humanitarian aid into the hard-hit northern Gaza Strip for the first time since it was damaged on Oct. 7, bowing to intense U.S. pressure to increase aid deliveries.
The Erez crossing, which connects directly to northern Gaza, was reopened for the first time on Wednesday during a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. International aid organizations have reported a widespread humanitarian disaster in Gaza, warning that hundreds of thousands of people face the risk of famine in the besieged territory's north.
“This is the first day that we reopened Erez crossing for a robust and continuous route for entrance of humanitarian aid into Gaza,” said Col. Moshe Tetro, a top official in COGAT, the Israeli military agency for Palestinian civilian affairs. He said he expected the crossing to operate daily.
Before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, Erez served as a passenger crossing for Palestinians, including medical patients, laborers and travelers, going in and out of Gaza. The crossing suffered heavy damage in the attack and has been closed since then.
Israel has previously allowed aid to enter Gaza via land crossings near the Egyptian border, and limited aid to pass through temporary crossings in northern Gaza. But aid organizations have struggled to distribute aid in Gaza’s north, where the humanitarian situation is most dire.
The delivery was reportedly held up for at least two hours by Israeli demonstrators who blocked the convoy after it entered the West Bank from neighboring Jordan on its way to Gaza.
Jordan’s foreign ministry condemned “in the strongest terms” what it said was violence by Israeli extremists and accused the Israeli government of failing to protect the convoys.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip -- A small group of Palestinians demonstrated Wednesday in central Gaza in solidarity with pro-Palestinian protests taking place across university campuses in the United States.
At a camp for displaced people in the city of Deir al-Balah, signs read: “Thanks for your solidarity! THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY.” Other posters thanked several other American universities where pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been taking place, including Harvard, MIT, Northwestern and George Washington universities.
In the past two weeks, student groups opposed to Israel’s military campaign against Hamas militants in Gaza have led protests across renowned American universities reaching from New York to Texas and California. They have called on the schools to stop doing business with Israel or companies that support the war in Gaza.
“This protest is to thank American universities and American students for standing with us and conveying our message to the world to stop the war and genocide that is taking place in Gaza,” said Mai Afifi, a Palestinian university student.
“I hope that Arab and Islamic universities will stand with us like American universities and try to stop the genocide, because we are students with dreams and ambitions and we want to complete our university studies,” Afifi added.
TEL AVIV, Israel —An Israeli court has released the sister of Hamas’ top leader to house arrest, after she was indicted for incitement and identification with a terror group, Israeli media reported.
The sister of Hamas’ supreme leader Ismail Haniyeh, Sabah Haniyeh, 57, was born in Gaza but has Israeli citizenship and lives in southern Israel. She was arrested in early April and indicted on April 21.
Haniyeh was released to house arrest on Wednesday.
According to the indictment, she sent several messages praising the Oct. 7 attack to Whatsapp groups that seem to include members of the extended Haniyeh family.
Previously, rights groups have accused Israel of cracking down on Palestinian online expression during the war. Palestinians have been arrested by Israeli authorities, fired by Israeli employers and expelled from Israeli schools for online speech deemed incendiary, rights groups say.
Israel is currently holding negotiations mediated by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar to try to release dozens of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a cease-fire in the nearly 7-month-old war.
Ismail Haniyeh lives in exile in Qatar.
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says his country has decided to formally join the legal case alleging genocide filed by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
Speaking at a joint news conference with his Indonesian counterpart, Retno Marsudi, in Ankara, Fidan said Turkey would submit an official application to intervene in the case against Israel at the ICJ after completing procedures. He did not give a time frame.
“We hope that with this step the proceedings at the International Court of Justice will move in the right direction,” Fidan said.
South Africa filed a case at the ICJ accusing Israel of breaching the U.N. Genocide Convention with its military offensive against Hamas. Israel fervently denies that its military campaign in Gaza amounts to a breach of the Genocide Convention.
Turkey is among the strongest critics of Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Turkish President has described Israel’s actions as war crimes and genocide while asserting that the Hamas militant group, considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and the European Union, is fighting for the liberation of its lands and people.
CAIRO — A leaked proposal detailing an emerging cease-fire agreement would include an Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in exchange for a planned release of hostages.
The proposal, confirmed Wednesday by an Egyptian official and a Hamas official, sheds light on the thorny details being hammered out in a bid to secure the deal. The details were first reported by Al-Akhbar, a Lebanese newspaper close to Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbollah militant group.
According to the proposal, Hamas would release female civilian hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners during the first week of a 40-day initial phase of the deal.
After this first batch, Israeli troops would withdraw from a coastal road and head eastward to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid and allow the return of displaced civilians to their homes in northern Gaza. Hamas would also provide a list of hostages who are still alive during that time.
Within the third week, both sides would start indirect negotiations that aim to restore permanent calm. Three weeks into the first phase, Israeli troops would withdraw from central Gaza.
The second six-week phase would finalize arrangements for a permanent calm, the release of all remaining hostages, both civilians and soldiers, held by Hamas, in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners. The soldier hostages will not be released before the start of the calm.
The third and final stage would include the release of the remains of hostages held in Gaza, more prisoners held by Israel and the start of a five-year reconstruction plan. The plan says that Hamas would agree not to rebuild its military arsenal.
Hamas earlier Wednesday said it wanted clarity from Egyptian mediators over certain terms of the deal, specifically over the unconditional return of displaced people to the north of Gaza and assurances the second stage will include a full withdrawal of all Israeli troops from Gaza.
The Egyptian and Hamas officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing behind the scenes negotiations.
By Associated Press writer Samy Magdy
TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken greeted the families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza who were protesting outside a meeting he held earlier Wednesday with Israel’s president.
Blinken briefly greeted several dozen demonstrators calling for an immediate hostage release deal on the sidewalk outside a Tel Aviv hotel. Earlier, he had met the families of Americans held captive by Hamas.
Chanting “SOS, USA, only you can save the day” and “In Blinken we trust, bring them home to us,” the protestors urged Blinken to make their case to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his War Cabinet.
Blinken told them that setting their loved ones free was “at the heart of everything we’re trying to do.”
In its Oct. 7 raid, Hamas killed 1,200 people and took some 250 people captive. About 100 were freed in a November truce. Hamas and other militant groups still hold 100, as well as the remains of 30 more, according to Israeli authorities.
Blinken is in the region to try to push Israel and Hamas to agree to a cease-fire deal that might bring a pause to the nearly seven-month-long war and free some of the remaining hostages. An emerging deal would see the release of 33 hostages in a first phase lasting six weeks, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
CAIRO — The Gaza Health Ministry said Wednesday the bodies of 33 people killed by Israeli strikes have been brought to local hospitals over the past 24 hours. Hospitals also received 57 wounded, it said in its daily report.
That brings the overall Palestinian death toll from the Israel-Hamas war to at least 34,568, the ministry said, and 77,765 wounded.
The Health Ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its tallies, but says that women and children make up around two-thirds of those killed.
The Israeli military says it has killed 13,000 militants, without providing evidence to back up the claim.
CAIRO, Egypt — Hamas has asked Egyptian and Qatari mediators to provide clarity on the terms of the latest cease-fire proposal being discussed as part of negotiations with Israel, an Egyptian official said Wednesday.
The official, who has close ties to the talks and spoke on condition of anonymity in order to freely discuss the deal, said Hamas wants clear terms for the unconditional return of displaced people to the north of Gaza and to ensure that the second stage of the deal will include discussing the gradual and complete withdrawal of all Israeli troops from the entire Gaza Strip.
The official said the current deal didn’t fully explain who would be allowed to return north and how it would be decided.
It was not clear if Hamas’ demand for clarity would delay progress on the deal that's emerging out of some of the first serious rounds of talks between the sides in months. Israel and Hamas have been far apart on the key issue of whether the war eventually ends as part of a later phase of the deal.
The emerging phased deal includes the release of 33 civilian and sick hostages held by militants in exchange for a halt to the fighting and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
AP writer Samy Magdy contributed to this report.
TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was meeting with Israeli leaders on Wednesday, telling the country’s ceremonial president that “the time is now” for a cease-fire deal.
Blinken has blamed Hamas for any delay is getting a deal off the ground.
“We are determined to get a cease-fire that brings the hostages home and to get it now, and the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” he said.
Blinken visited key regional leaders in Saudi Arabia and Jordan before arriving to Israel. He met Israeli President Isaac Herzog and was set to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later. According to the State Department, he will meet also with families of the hostages as well as visit an Israeli port where aid is entering for shipment to Gaza.
The emerging deal between Israel and Hamas appears to be gaining steam but a key sticking point remains over whether the war will end as part of the agreement, a demand Hamas has stuck to and which Israel rejects.
Pro-Palestianian protesters gather near a main gate at Columbia University in New York, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, just before New York City police officers cleared the area after a building was taken over by protesters earlier in the day. The building and a tent encampment were cleared during the operation. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
A protester yells at law enforcement officer from behind the barricades erected by pro-Palestinian protesters encamped on the University of Arizona campus, early Wednesday, May 1, 2024 in Tucson, Ariz. (Kelly Presnell/Arizona Daily Star via AP)
A line of Pima County Sheriff's deputies form a shield line as law enforcement gathers outside an encampment of pro-Palestinian protesters encamped on the University of Arizona campus, early Wednesday, May 1, 2024 in Tucson, Ariz. (Kelly Presnell/Arizona Daily Star via AP)
Tucson Police take a protester into custody on Park Avenue as law enforcement personnel from several area agencies clear an encampment of pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Arizona campus, early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Tucson, Ariz. (Kelly Presnell/Arizona Daily Star via AP)
Israeli soldiers stand near their vehicles, displaying t-shirts calling for the return of hostages, on the Israeli side of the Erez crossing into the Gaza Strip from southern Israel as trucks carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip are inspected, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Israeli soldiers gather on the Israeli side of the Erez crossing from southern Israel into Gaza, bordering a battle-ravaged area of the northern Gaza Strip, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Col. Moshe Tetro, head of COGAT's Coordination and Liaison Administration (CLA) for Gaza, speaks to journalists at an inspection area for trucks carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip, on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing from southern Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Boxes from Jordan wait an inspection area for trucks carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip, on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing between southern Israel and Gaza, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
A worker moves a pallet in an inspection area for trucks carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip, on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing between southern Israel and Gaza, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
A military aircraft flies above as as a truck carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip drives on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing between southern Israel and Gaza, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Israeli soldiers gather near a gate to walks through an inspection area for trucks carrying humanitarian aid supplies bound for the Gaza Strip, on the Israeli side of the Erez crossing into Gaza, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to families and supporters of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during a protest calling for their return, after meeting families of hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, centre, is welcomed by Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Mike Herzog, as he arrives at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, Israel, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
Israeli soldiers are seen at a staging ground near the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv, Israel Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
A woman holds a banner and shouts slogans with families and supporters of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during a protest calling for their return, outside a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and families of hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, meets with the families and supporters of the hostages held by Hamas, outside of a hotel, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with Prince Rashid, Head of the Board of Trustees for JHCO as they visit a storage with humanitarian aid bound for Gaza at the Jordanian Hashemite Charity Organization in Amman, Jordan, April 30, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
This image provided by Maxar Technologies, shows an April 29, 2024, aerial view of USNS Roy P. Benavidez and floating dock sections during construction of the U.S. military's floating dock that is being assembled offshore of Gaza. The dock and floating pier will be part of the Joint Logistics Over the Shore (JLOTS) system that will help deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza,. (Satellite image ©2024 Maxar Technologies via AP)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, and Israeli President Isaac Herzog meet in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP)
A woman sits outside an encampment area on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Milwaukee. The Pro-Palestinian rally is calling for the University to cut ties with Israel and for peace in Gaza. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
A student wrapped in and Israeli flag listens to Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on campus at the University of Texas at Austin, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
A woman wears a keffiyeh, left, while setting up a tent at an encampment of tents on the campus of Tufts University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Medford, Mass. Tufts University students set up the encampment as part of a protest against the war in Gaza. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli airstrike in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Ami Aviv mother of Israeli reserve soldier Master sergeant Ido Aviv kisses his casket during his funeral in Carmiel, northern Israel, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Aviv, 28, was killed during Israel's ground operation in the Gaza Strip, where the Israeli army has been battling Palestinian militants in the war ignited by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack into Israel. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits a storage unit with humanitarian aid bound for Gaza at the Jordanian Hashemite Charity Organization in Amman, Jordan, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Army, soldiers assigned to the 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary) and sailors attached to the MV Roy P. Benavidez assemble the Roll-On, Roll-Off Distribution Facility (RRDF), or floating pier, off the shore of Gaza in the Mediterranean Sea on April 26, 2024. The pier is part of the Army's Joint Logistics Over The Shore (JLOTS) system which provides critical bridging and water access capabilities. (U.S. Army via AP)
Students from the Lebanese American University (LAU) burn a picture of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a protest inside their university campus to demand a ceasefire and show support for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Scores of students held pro-Palestinian protests at some of the largest universities in Beirut Tuesday expressing anger over the rising deaths during the Israel-Hamas war. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli airstrike in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
