The Australian government faces a decision next week on whether to support admitting Palestine as a full member of the UN and is swapping notes with allies including South Korea and Germany. A copy of the draft resolution,

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Hamas to accept the latest cease-fire and hostage-release agreement proposed by Israel. In remarks Wednesday in Ashdod, Israel, he cited “meaningful progress” on increasing aid to Gaza and said a maritime corridor for deliveries via a temporary pier under construction by the U.

The US and Saudi Arabia are said to be drawing closer to a historic deal that could reshape the Middle East — by sidestepping the vexed issue of Israel's war in Gaza. According to Bloomberg, the deal would involve the US providing security guarantees to Saudi Arabia and sharing key technology in areas like AI, nuclear energy and quantum computing.