New Delhi, Aug 19: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky brought a letter from his wife, Olena Zelenska, addressed to US First Lady Melania Trump that was handed over at Oval office to Trump in presence of media. The gesture followed Melania’s own widely reported letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, urging him to protect children caught in the war. Zelensky praised her intervention, calling it a “humanitarian gesture that carries deep meaning for Ukrainian families.”

The exchange of letters added a deeply personal dimension to Monday’s White House summit, where the main agenda revolved around war, security guarantees, and possible peace talks. But alongside the geopolitics, the issue of abducted children found a prominent place.

While Trump’s primary focus at the summit was on arranging a possible meeting between Zelensky and Putin, the attention on abducted children reflected how the first lady’s role is being woven into the wider diplomatic narrative. Melania Trump, typically reserved on political matters, has in recent weeks become more visible on humanitarian issues, particularly those affecting children.

President Donald Trump said he and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had discussed the global problem of missing children, an issue, he noted, that is also a priority for the first lady, reports international media.

“Ursula von der Leyen, the distinguished and highly respected President of the European Commission, and I have been discussing the massive worldwide problem of missing children,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This is, likewise, a big subject with my wife, Melania. It is a subject at the top of all lists, and the world will work together to solve it, hopefully bringing them home to their families.”

Von der Leyen responded on X, tying the issue directly to the war in Ukraine. “The human cost of the Ukraine war must end. And that means every single Ukrainian child abducted by Russia must be returned to their families. I thank @POTUS for his clear commitment today to ensuring these children are reunited with their loved ones,” she wrote.

Kyiv says thousands of Ukrainian children have been taken to Russia since the start of the invasion, often separated from their families. The International Criminal Court has already issued an arrest warrant for Putin over the alleged deportations.

The exchange of letters between the two first ladies gave a softer, human layer to an otherwise tense day of negotiations. As one European diplomat noted, “The politics are difficult, but sometimes it is these personal touches that remind us what is at stake.”

By focusing on abducted children, the first ladies’ exchange added a deeply human angle to a summit dominated by strategic and diplomatic maneuvers. Behind the maps, peace plans, and security posturing lies the suffering of thousands of families torn apart.

Rafah (Egypt), Aug 18: Hamas said Monday it has accepted a new proposal from Arab mediators for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip but Israel indicated its positions haven’t changed, as Gaza’s Health Ministry said the Palestinian death toll from 22 months of war has passed 62,000.

US President Donald Trump appeared to cast doubt on the long-running negotiations that Washington has mediated as well. “We will only see the return of the remaining hostages when Hamas is confronted and destroyed!!! The sooner this takes place, the better the chances of success will be,” he posted on social media.

Israel announced plans to reoccupy Gaza City and other heavily populated areas after ceasefire talks appeared to break down last month, raising the possibility of a worsening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, which experts say is sliding into famine.

Plans to expand the offensive, in part aimed at pressuring Hamas, have sparked international outrage and infuriated many Israelis who fear for the remaining hostages taken in the Oct 7, 2023, attack that started the war. Hundreds of thousands took part in mass protests on Sunday calling for their return.

Egypt says Witkoff invited to join talks

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said mediators are “exerting extensive efforts” to revive a US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire, during which some of the remaining 50 hostages would be released and the sides would negotiate a lasting ceasefire and the return of the rest.

Abdelatty told The Associated Press they are inviting U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to join the ceasefire talks.

Abdelatty spoke to journalists during a visit to Egypt’s Rafah crossing with Gaza, which has not functioned since Israel seized the Palestinian side in May 2024. He was accompanied by Mohammad Mustafa, the prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, which has been largely sidelined since the war began.

Abdelatty said Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani had joined the talks, which include senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya, who arrived in Cairo last week. Abdelatty said they are open to other ideas, including for a comprehensive deal that would release all the hostages at once.

Bassem Naim, a senior Hamas official, told the AP that the militant group had accepted the proposal introduced by the mediators, without elaborating.

An Egyptian official, speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss the talks, said the proposal includes changes to Israel’s pullback of its forces and guarantees for negotiations on a lasting ceasefire during the initial truce. The official said it is almost identical to an earlier proposal accepted by Israel, which has not yet joined the latest talks.

Diaa Rashwan, head of the Egypt State Information Service, told the AP that Egypt and Qatar have sent the Hamas-accepted proposal to Israel.

An Israeli official said Israel’s positions, including on the release of all hostages, had not changed from previous rounds of talks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with the media.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas has been disarmed, and to maintain lasting security control over Gaza. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining hostages in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.

Netanyahu said in a video addressing the Israeli public that reports of Hamas’ acceptance of the proposal showed that it is “under massive pressure.”

Palestinian death toll surpasses 62,000

Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200, mostly civilians, in the attack that ignited the war. Around 20 of the hostages still in Gaza are believed by Israel to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said the Palestinian death toll from the war had climbed to 62,004, with another 156,230 people wounded. It does not say how many were civilians or combatants, but says women and children make up around half the dead.

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The UN and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties. Israel disputes its toll but has not provided its own.

The ministry said 1,965 people have been killed while seeking humanitarian aid since May, either in the chaos around UN convoys or while heading to sites operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed American contractor.

Witnesses, health officials and the UN human rights office say Israeli forces have repeatedly fired toward crowds seeking aid. Israel says it has only fired warning shots at people who approached its forces. GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray or fired into the air on rare occasions to prevent deadly crowding.

More deaths linked to malnutrition

Experts have warned that Israel’s ongoing offensive is pushing Gaza toward famine, even after it eased a complete 2 1/2-month blockade on the territory in May. Gaza’s Health Ministry said Monday that five more people, including two children, died of malnutrition-related causes.

It says at least 112 children have died of malnutrition-related causes since the war began, and 151 adults have died since the ministry started tracking adult malnutrition deaths in June.

Amnesty International on Monday accused Israel of “carrying out a deliberate campaign of starvation.”

Israel has rejected such allegations, saying it allows in enough food and accusing the UN of failing to promptly deliver it. UN agencies say they are hindered by Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of law and order in the territory, around three-quarters of which is now controlled by Israel.