Qatar, US discuss delivering humanitarian aid into Gaza 'without obstacles'

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, discussed Friday on phone with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken the efforts to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza Strip and accelerate the entry of humanitarian aid without obstacles.

"The call dealt with discussing the close strategic relations between the two countries, the latest developments in the situation in the Gaza Strip," Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The top diplomats also reviewed "the efforts of the two countries to reach an immediate cease-fire in the Strip and accelerate the pace of bringing humanitarian aid into Gaza without obstacles," the statement added.

On Thursday, the US State Department said that the Washington and Doha discussed efforts over the phone to reach an agreement for the immediate release of all hostages and to achieve a humanitarian cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli delegation participating in negotiations with Hamas returned to Tel Aviv from Qatar on Thursday. The delegation the details of a potential prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.

The Israeli delegation arrived in Qatar last Monday to discuss with mediators the details of a temporary cease-fire and a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.

Hamas is believed to be holding nearly 134 Israelis following its cross-border attack on Oct. 7.

Flouting the International Court of Justice's provisional ruling, Israel continues its onslaught on the Gaza Strip, where at least 30,228 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and 71,377 injured since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide by the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.