Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underscored the importance of maintaining close ties with the United States on Thursday, saying Washington had stood by its ally during the Middle East war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday that Israel's "struggle" is not over yet, and that more challenges lie ahead, after the U.S. and Iran signed an MoU to end the war between them, which also inlcudes a clause about stopping the conflict in Lebanon and respecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Qatar, a key negotiator in the deal to end the war between the U.S. and Iran, said on Thursday the agreement served as a firm basis for further talks.

The Gulf state's foreign ministry said in a statement that the deal "represents a solid foundation for advancing to the next stage of negotiations between the American and Iranian parties", ahead of technical talks expected in Switzerland on Friday.

Over the past two and a half years, Israel has taken control of swaths of Gaza, Lebanon and Syria that amount to its biggest expansion of militarily occupied lands in decades.

It is an area larger than many major cities — roughly 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) — and Israel has said it plans to stay indefinitely.

Israel's foreign minister said Thursday that he was severing all contact with the European Union's top diplomat Kaja Kallas over reported remarks in which she allegedly compared Israel to the apartheid regime that once ruled South Africa.

"Recently, it was published that during her visit to Mexico, she compared Israel to the racist apartheid regime that existed in South Africa," Gideon Saar wrote on X.

The Swiss foreign ministry confirmed Thursday that "initial negotiations" on implementing a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding on ending the Middle East war were planned to take place in Switzerland on Friday.

"Currently, the plan remains for the United States and Iran, along with the mediators Pakistan and Qatar and other involved countries, to meet tomorrow at the Burgenstock for initial negotiations on the implementation of the agreement," the ministry said, lifting a degree of uncertainty that had hung over the meeting at the luxury mountainside resort near Lucerne.

Israeli operations in the Gaza Strip have killed 1,005 Palestinians since a ceasefire was reached between Israel and the militant group Hamas last October, the Gaza Health Ministry said Wednesday.

The enclave has seen near-daily strikes, as well as shelling and gunfire along the boundary that divides Gaza into Israeli and Palestinian-controlled zones. The most recent deaths were recorded after a series of Israeli drone strikes in the past few days on towns and refugee camps in central Gaza and Gaza City.

JD Vance was supposed to be spending the week promoting his new book, the kind of event a potential presidential candidate like the vice president typically uses to speak to a wide audience about his life and values ahead of a campaign.

Instead, the rollout of Vance's second book, "Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith," has been largely crowded out by something else he's put his name on: the tentative deal to end the Iran war.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said Washington "did send a copy" of its accord with Iran to end the Middle East war, following reports of tensions with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Insisting he maintains a good relationship with Netanyahu, Trump reaffirmed his criticism at the G7 summit of Israel's campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying "they (Israel) could do a much better job".

President Donald Trump signed an agreement with Iran on Wednesday that calls for Tehran to dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and waives U.S.-backed sanctions on the country, immediately allowing Iran to sell its oil freely in a major concession from Washington, according to details released by both countries.

The initial deal to end the war takes "immediate effect" after leaders from both countries signed it, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who helped mediate the agreement, said online.