Hamas expresses "surprise" after US envoy Steve Witkoff accuses the group of showing "a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire".

CAIRO (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his government was considering “alternative options” to ceasefire talks with Hamas after Israel and the U.S. recalled their negotiating teams, throwing the future of the negotiations into further uncertainty.

The Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza City is one of three operational churches in the coastal enclave and currently shelters about 600 people. More than 21 months of war have crippled the region and led to mass starvation, according to aid groups, as Israel continues its operation to dismantle Hamas’s grip on Gaza.