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STORY: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS SCRIPT UPDATES AN EARLIER STORY WITH HAMAS'S STATEMENT ON NEGOTIATIONS. A senior Hamas official said on Tuesday the Palestinian militant group had accepted a United Nations-backed ceasefire resolution and is ready to negotiate details, a move the U.S. called a 'hopeful sign.' Qatari and Egyptian mediators said they had received a formal reply from Hamas to the truce proposal. And Hamas and its ally Palestinian Islamic Jihad issued a joint statement on Tuesday expressing "readiness to positively" reach a deal to end the war in Gaza. :: June 10, 2024 The U.N. Security Council approved U.S. President Joe Biden's proposal for a truce on Monday. Biden's proposal would pause fighting in the Gaza Strip and facilitate the return of Israelis held hostage by Hamas... ultimately leading to an end to the war. “We have the prospect of an immediate ceasefire, building toward an enduring one and tremendous relief for people in Gaza..." In a visit to Tel Aviv on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken responded to Hamas's statement with measured optimism. “Well, I say it is a hopeful sign just as the statement they issued after the President made his proposal 10 days ago, was hopeful. but it’s not dis-positive." Both Israel and Hamas suggested on Tuesday the plan fit their clashing goals, raising doubt whether any genuine headway towards a deal had been made. :: Released October 7, 2023 The war began when Hamas-led Palestinian militants stormed into southern Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 as hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's retaliatory air and ground onslaught in Gaza has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, the Gaza health ministry said on Tuesday. Israeli strikes have reduced most of the densely-populated coastal enclave to wasteland. Blinken traveled from Israel to neighboring Jordan for a summit on the humanitarian response for Gaza's 2.3 million residents, most of whom are now homeless. The American diplomat announced more than $400 million in assistance for Palestinians.

STORY: ::Rahaf Nasser is using her passion for music to entertain children on the streets of Gaza ::Unable to continue with her medical studies, Nasser spends her days playing songs amid the rubble ::Deir al-Balah, Gaza ::Rahaf Nasser, Medical student :: "I lost all my memories, all my childhood toys, in my home. So, I came here without anything, we couldn't bring anything with us. I left all my music instruments there. So, I borrowed my father’s friend’s guitar..." :: "I use music to deliver my message and my voice to the whole world, that we love life, we love to live. Our children love to play. The children out there. Everyone thinks that we love to die, that we love the situation that we are in. But that is wrong. Our children love to live, love to be alive, to play with each other. Here we cannot do anything of that, they cannot do anything of that, they just want peace, they just want peace to be around there.” The young student fled her home during Israel’s military offensive in the area and moved to Deir al-Balah further south with her family. Unable to continue with her medical studies, Nasser spends her days playing songs on the rubble of buildings or on rooftops overlooking her new neighbourhood. Despite her passion in music, Nasser hopes to be able to continue her medical degree and, she says, "help my people" in Gaza. Israel has besieged and laid waste to much of the Gaza Strip since launching an offensive in retaliation for the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack that killed some 1,200 people in Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's offensive has killed more than 37,000 people in Gaza, according to the Palestinian enclave's health ministry.

STORY: ::Angry scenes erupt as Israel's parliament votes on a law to conscript ultra-Orthodox Jews into the military ::The families of Gaza hostages demand more action to get their loved ones home ::June 10, 2024 ::Jerusalem The move comes a day after centrist former general Benny Gantz quit the government in a dispute over the strategic aims of the Gaza war. The vote and confrontations underscored the volatile mix of forces buffeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, now increasingly dependent on his allies from the hard right. The conscription bill, which must still pass further readings and committee hearings after the late night vote, would see a gradual entry into the military of some ultra-Orthodox Jews, who have traditionally resisted serving in the armed forces. As parliament prepared to vote on the bill, there were angry exchanges at a meeting of the finance committee, where members of some of the hostage families waylaid Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and demanded the government do more to bring the captives home. Smotrich, who has ruled out any deal with Hamas and has opposed proposals for a ceasefire deal which would bring the hostages back in an exchange for Palestinian prisoners, dismissed the families' campaign as cynical.

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said at least 274 Palestinians were killed at the refugee camp, while Israel said the death toll was fewer than 100.

STORY: U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT FOR JUNE 2024, JOONKOOK HWANG: “The draft resolution has been adopted…”
 The United Nations Security Council backed a plan on Monday for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It’s the plan U.S. President Joe Biden outlined on May 31, aimed at ending the eight-month-long war. Monday’s resolution welcomes that proposal, says Israel has accepted the deal and calls on Hamas to agree to it. HWANG: “Those in favor of the draft resolution…” // “…please raise their hand.” Fourteen security council members voted in favor. :: HWANG: “Abstentions?” Russia abstained. Its ambassador asked what Israel had specifically agreed to. Hamas welcomed the adoption of the U.S.-drafted resolution. In a statement the militant group said it’s ready to cooperate with mediators over implementing the plan's principles. :: May 31, 2024 JOE BIDEN: “It’s time for the war to end…” The resolution supports a three-phase ceasefire plan laid out by Biden, which he described as an Israeli initiative. Negotiators from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have been trying to hash out a ceasefire for months. :: Released October 7, 2023 Hamas says it wants a permanent end to the war in Gaza and Israeli withdrawal from the enclave of 2.3 million people. Israel is retaliating against Hamas, which rules Gaza, over the October 7 attack by its militants. More than 1,200 people were killed and over 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. :: May 31, 2024 More than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities.

STORY: BLINKEN: "If you want a ceasefire, press Hamas to say yes. ." U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday shuttled between Cairo and Jerusalem pushing a proposed truce in Gaza. Blinken met first with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Afterward, he told reporters that the greatest obstacle in reaching a ceasefire was that Hamas had yet to accept the terms of a deal outlined by U.S. President Joe Biden last month. "So, the only party that has not accepted, the only party that has not said yes, is Hamas. That’s who everyone is waiting on. That’s who the Palestinians in Gaza are waiting on. It’s who the Israelis are waiting on. It’s who the hostage and the hostages' families are waiting on." Blinken then flew to Israel, where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a statement, Netanyahu said his country remained "committed to total victory." A Hamas official told Reuters on Monday that Blinken's comments were biased toward Israel. :: Released October 7, 2023 The war has now entered its ninth month, since Hamas-led fighters killed 1,200 people and took some 250 others hostage in a rampage through southern Israel. In response, Israel launched an assault on the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians and reduced most of the enclave to wasteland. :: Source: Israeli Military Israel's military on Monday released video it said showed scenes from a weekend operation that resulted in the rescue of four hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7 and recovered from the Nuseirat refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip. :: June 9, 2024 Palestinian officials said the operation, which involved airstrikes and ground troops, killed 274 people, making it one of the deadliest assaults of the war. Anas Alyan picked through the ruins of his home. "This is our house. We were safely sitting in it and suddenly, several consecutive explosions happened. We did not know what was happening. I was sitting upstairs in my apartment, I went down to my parents' floor and found all my relatives thrown because of the Jewish (Israeli) soldiers. They were firing at us with mortar rockets, at the living room. All my relatives were wounded. There was also a lot of gunfire - F16, quadcopters, drones. It was horrible. Soldiers in this area were all firing." Israeli forces said they were aware of under 100 Palestinians killed and did not know how many were combatants. :: Source: Hamas Armed Wing Hamas's military wing released this video on Sunday purporting to show its fighters battling Israeli tanks in the streets of Rafah, in southern Gaza. Israeli forces began an operation in the city last month despite White House pressure to hold off. :: June 7, 2024 Around half of the Gaza Strip's 2.3 million people had been sheltering in Rafah before last month's assault, and a million have had to flee again.

STORY: Palestinian couple Mahmoud and Fatima Jarghoun have sold their jewelry so they could perform the haj pilgrimage to Mecca. They have been yearning to make the journey for years. But with no way out of the Gaza Strip, their dream of getting to Saudi Arabia has been shattered. “They even want to deny us our worship, they even want to deny us the haj. I don’t know who we should complain to or cry to or speak to. Who should we go to? We ask God to relieve us (of this situation) and for them to open the border.” Jarghoun said the deep disappointment of being unable to make the pilgrimage had compounded the pain inflicted by the war. His home in Khan Younis has been destroyed. He estimates the repair would cost some $20,000. The haj is one of the five basic obligations of a Muslim and every believer who has the means should perform the pilgrimage at least once in his or her lifetime. It begins on Friday (June 14). Pilgrims are already piling into Mecca for the occasion. Some of them, like Alia Asmaa, say they hope to see a ceasefire deal. "Our prayers are with Gaza and it is very sad to see people dying everyday so my wish for Gaza is that this war will end very soon." Palestinians typically wait years for their turn after registering their names with the Palestinian authorities. The couple said they had been waiting almost 18 years. “Every year, we wait to go to haj and it doesn’t happen. I sold my jewelry and all that is in my possession because we had a debt due to the house that we built, we could not otherwise register. After our names came through, the war happened, and all our hope was lost. We were very happy that our name came through and we were going to go. At the end, all our dreams were gone. We were very, very upset.” :: Beeri, Israel Israel has besieged and laid waste to much of the Gaza Strip since launching an offensive in retaliation for the October 7 Hamas-led attack. It killed some 1,200 people in Israel, according to Israeli tallies. :: Khan Younis, Gaza Israel's offensive has killed more than 37,000 people in Gaza, according to the Palestinian enclave's health ministry.

Four hostages were rescued in Gaza during a daytime Israeli raid. But Hamas claims hundreds of Palestinians were killed in the process. Also, a CBS News poll shows Donald Trump and President Biden are virtually tied in key battleground states. All that and all that matters in today's Eye Opener.

STORY: Israeli minister Benny Gantz quit his country's emergency coalition government on Sunday... leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu without a centrist power in his government. In a televised news conference, Gantz said Netanyahu is (quote) "preventing us from advancing toward true victory," and that politics was clouding fateful strategic decisions in his cabinet. He added that stepping down while hostages were still in Gaza and soldiers were still fighting there was an excruciating decision. A former general, Gantz had joined Netanyahu's inner war cabinet soon after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas, where he, the prime minister and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant were the only voting members. "I was very privileged together with my friends to bring to the Cabinet Room all the experience we have. I know that the other people are staying mainly Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister himself. They know what should be done. Hopefully they will stick to what should be done and then it will be okay." Gantz last month had presented Netanyahu with a June 8 deadline to come up with a clear postwar strategy for Gaza. Netanyahu brushed off the ultimatum soon after it was given. While the departure of Gantz's centrist party will not pose an immediate threat to Israel's government, it could have a serious impact. It leaves Netanyahu reliant on hardliners, with no end in sight to the Gaza war and a possible escalation in fighting with Lebanese Hezbollah. This would likely increase strains already apparent in relations with the U.S. and intensify public pressure at home, with the war still not achieving its stated goals - the destruction of Hamas and the return of more than 100 remaining hostages held in Gaza. After announcing his resignation, Gantz urged Netanyahu to agree on an election date in the fall, to avoid further political infighting at a time of national emergency. Polls have shown Gantz to be the most formidable political rival to the prime minister. Netanyahu responded to Gantz's resignation in a social media post, telling him it was no time to abandon the battlefront.

STORY: :: Israeli Minister Benny Gantz withdraws his centrist party from Netanyahu's coalition government :: File :: Gantz cited Netanyahu's lack of postwar strategy in Gaza as the reason for his resignation :: Benny Gantz, Former Israeli minister "Regrettably, Netanyahu is preventing us from advancing toward true victory, which is the justification for the ongoing and painful cost (of war). That is why we are leaving the emergency government today, with a heavy heart but with full confidence." :: June 9, 2024 :: Ramat Gan, Israel (Gantz) "I was very privileged together with my friends to bring to the Cabinet Room all the experience we have. I know that the other people are staying mainly Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister himself. They know what should be done. Hopefully they will stick to what should be done. Then it will be okay." Netanyahu issued a brief statement calling on Gantz not to "abandon the front," but his departure will not endanger the parliamentary majority of 64 seats in the 120-seat Knesset held by the ruling right-wing coalition. Gantz's resignation had been expected ever since he presented the conservative prime minister with a June 8 deadline to come up with a clear day-after strategy for Gaza, where Israel has been pressing a devastating military offensive against the ruling Palestinian militant group Hamas. His departure means that Netanyahu will lose the backing of a centrist bloc that has helped broaden support for the government in Israel and abroad, at a time of increasing diplomatic and domestic pressure eight months into the Gaza war.

STORY: ::Israeli police disperse protesters demonstrating against the government ::This protest comes just hours after Israeli forces rescued four hostages held by Hamas ::Tel Aviv, Israel :: June 8, 2024 :: Bina Perry, Protester “(I joined the protest) for two reasons. One is for the changing of this government. But we do not like what they are not doing at all. And the second for the refugees and all the people that the families of the people were kidnapped in Gaza, that nobody (in the government) thinks about them. Nobody. They (the government) are thinking about the destroying of Gaza. It's very bad all right, but we don't have any chance to come over the Hamas because they are putting all their forces inside and between the civilian people. And then all the world is against us because we are killing the civilian people.” Regular protests are held in Tel Aviv's squares, one against the Israeli government, the other calling for the release of hostages held in Gaza, after which protesters from both gatherings march, joining together to block roads in the city. Hamas' raid killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped over 250 people in the Oct 7. attack, according to Israeli authorities, and Israel's subsequent bombardment and invasion of Gaza has killed at least 36,801 Palestinians, according to an updated tally by the territory's health ministry on Saturday.

STORY: :: Rozi Ziv, Mother of rescued hostage Shlomi Ziv "My dream came true and I wish for the other hostages that their dream comes true as well. I thank God, I thank our country, our people, our government, our army. Only together can we win, with God's help and with the help of the wonderful soldiers we have. May God bring them all back, all in peace, safe and sound, Amen." :: June 8, 2024 :: Ramat Gan, Israel :: Orit Meir, Mother of rescued hostage Almog Meir Jan "There are still 120 hostages in Gaza and we want a deal now. We want them to come back home as soon as possible." During the news conference, family members also spoke of hostages left in Gaza and their hope for their negotiated release. The four hostages, held by Hamas since October 7, were rescued by Israeli forces in a raid in Gaza that Palestinian officials said killed more than 200 people, one of the single bloodiest Israeli assaults of the eight-month-old war. An Israeli police commander was also killed during the raid. Israel named the rescued hostages as Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41. They were taken to hospital for medical checks and were in good health, the military said.

Four hostages held captive by Hamas since the Oct. 7 terror assault on Israel were rescued by Israeli forces Saturday in a raid in central Gaza. Israel said Hamas was hiding the hostages, three men and a woman, in two separate residential buildings in a densely populated area. Hamas said more than 200 Palestinians were killed in the operation. Chris Livesay has the latest.

STORY: :: Netanyahu praises Israel's rescue of four hostages, vowing to help free others held by Hamas :: June 8, 2024 :: Ramat Gan, Israel :: Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel "Israel just carried out a remarkable rescue operation of four hostages held by Hamas. This operation required courage and ingenuity of the highest degree and our soldiers performed in an unmatchable way. We're committed to getting the release of all the hostages and we expect Hamas to release them all. And if they don't, we'll do whatever it takes to get them all back home." At a press conference in Ramat Gan, Israel, Netanyahu promised to secure the release of all the remaining hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza.