A new round of Gaza ceasefire talks is underway in Qatar. The death toll of Palestinians killed in Gaza since Israel’s retaliatory attack last October has now surpassed 40,000, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, there are growing fears that violence in the Middle East region could further escalate. Israel is on high alert after the recent assassination of a Hamas leader in Tehran that resulted in Iran vowing to retaliate.

Joining the discussion: 

• Mohammad Marandi is Professor of English Literature at the University of Tehran. 
• Sara Yael Hirschhorn is an historian and political analyst. Also with us is 
• Khalil Jahshan is Executive Director of the Arab Center in Washington, D.C. 
• Nabeel Khoury is former U.S. Diplomat is now a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Arab Center in Washington, D.C.  

New round of #Gaza ceasefire talks underway in #Doha with #Israel’s spy chief joining his #US and #Egyptian counterparts and #Qatar’s prime minister @MBA_AlThani_ for closed-door meeting https://t.co/YjT2Tg1laW

— Arab News (@arabnews) August 15, 2024

“[Iran] put themselves in the position to have to do something, and this time they needed to be more impactful without creating another round of retaliations by the Israelis," says MEI's @AlexVatanka to @WSJ. https://t.co/axC6wBG5H6

— Middle East Institute (@MiddleEastInst) August 15, 2024

Limited access to water and sanitation is fueling a surge in communicable diseases and skin infections across Gaza, especially for children, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. pic.twitter.com/gf2vxHleHv

— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) August 14, 2024