Israel confirmed on Tuesday that several senior Hamas officials and mid-level commanders, including Issam al-Daalis, head of the Hamas-run government in Gaza, were killed in its latest airstrikes. Al-Daalis was the head of Hamas's Government Administrative Committee in the Gaza Strip, a role comparable to that of a prime minister. The Israeli military and Shin Bet domestic security agency said in a joint statement that al-Daalis succeeded Rawhi Mushtaha as "the head of the Hamas government" after Mushtaha was killed by Israeli forces in July 2024. The statement said several Hamas officials were killed over the past 24 hours in "dozens" of airstrikes. It said that "based on the information available at this stage, it can be determined with high probability" that three other Hamas members were killed. These included Mahmoud Abu Watfa, Gaza's head of internal affairs authority; Bahjat Hassan Abu Sultan, head of Hamas's internal security forces; and Ahmed Omar al-Hatta, head of Gaza's justice authorities. More than 400 killed as Israel launches airstrikes across Gaza In a statement earlier on Tuesday, Hamas confirmed that al-Daalis, as well as other officials, were killed in the Israeli assault, saying al-Daalis served as the Chairman of the Government Follow-Up Committee.

In the occupied West Bank, Israeli fire killed three Palestinians, including a 58-year-old woman, in the restive city of Jenin on Tuesday, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.  The Israeli military stated that two of those killed were militants engaged in an exchange of fire with troops. A third individual, who allegedly opened fire at Israeli forces, was also killed. Additionally, 10 people were arrested, and two vehicles loaded with weapons were destroyed, the army said.  Israel launched a major military operation in Jenin following the January ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza. Since then, forces have demolished homes and infrastructure, forcing tens of thousands of Palestinians to flee northern parts of the West Bank, AP reports.  More than 1,000 people dead in clashes between Syrian govt forces and Asad loyalists The Gaza Health Ministry reported that four people were killed and 14 wounded by Israeli fire in the past 24 hours. Rescuers also recovered 32 bodies from the rubble.  Among those killed were three brothers targeted by a drone strike in central Gaza on Monday, while a woman was killed in a separate strike in Rafah on Tuesday.  The latest fatalities bring the overall Palestinian death toll to 48,503, with over 110,000 wounded, according to the ministry. It says women and children make up the majority of those killed but does not differentiate between fighters and civilians.  Israel claims to have killed over 17,000 militants but has not provided evidence. 

President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued what he called a “last warning” to Hamas to release all remaining hostages held in Gaza, directing a sharply worded message after the White House confirmed that he had recently dispatched an envoy for unprecedented direct talks with the militant group. In a statement on his Truth Social platform soon after meeting at the White House with eight former hostages, Trump added that he was “sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job.” “Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you,” Trump said. “Only sick and twisted people keep bodies, and you are sick and twisted!” The pointed language from Trump came after the White House said Wednesday that U.S. officials have engaged in “ongoing talks and discussions” with Hamas officials, stepping away from a long-held U.S. policy of not directly engaging with the militant group. Confirmation of the talks in the Qatari capital of Doha came as the Israel-Hamas ceasefire remains in the balance. It’s the first known direct engagement between the United States and Hamas since the State Department designated the group a foreign terrorist organization in 1997. US pauses intelligence sharing with Ukraine amid diplomatic spat White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to provide detail on the substance of talks, but said President Donald Trump has authorized his envoys to “talk to anyone.” Egyptian and Qatari intermediaries have served as mediators with Hamas for the U.S. and Israel since the group launched its Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war. “Look, dialogue and talking to people around the world to do what’s in the best interest of the American people is something that the president ... believes is a good-faith effort to do what’s right for the American people,” she said. Leavitt added that Israel has been consulted about the direct engagement with Hamas officials, and noted that there are “American lives at stake.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office offered a terse acknowledgement of the U.S.-Hamas talks. “Israel has expressed to the United States its position regarding direct talks with Hamas,” the prime minister’s office said. ‘If US wants war, we are ready’: China Israeli officials say about 24 living hostages — including Edan Alexander, an American citizen — as well as the bodies of at least 35 others are believed to still be held in Gaza. Adam Boehler, Trump’s nominee to be special envoy for hostage affairs, led the direct talks with Hamas. Boehler, founder and CEO of Rubicon Founders, a healthcare investment firm, was a lead negotiator on the Abraham Accords team during Trump’s first term that strove to win broader recognition of Israel in the Arab world. The talks, which took place last month, focused mainly on the release of American hostages, and a potential end of the war without Hamas in power in Gaza, according to a Hamas official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The official added that no progress was made but “the step itself is promising” and more talks are expected. Egyptian and Qatari mediators helped arrange the talks. The direct engagement comes as continuation of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire remains uncertain. Trump has signaled that he has no intentions of pushing Netanyahu away from a return to combat if Hamas doesn’t agree to terms of a new ceasefire proposal, which the Israelis have billed as being drafted by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff. The new plan would require Hamas to release half its remaining hostages — the militant group’s main bargaining chip — in exchange for a ceasefire extension and a promise to negotiate a lasting truce. Israel made no mention of releasing more Palestinian prisoners, a key component of the first phase. Appeals court allows watchdog agency head’s removal as legal battle rages over Trump firing Trump on Wednesday welcomed eight former hostages — Iair Horn, Omer Shem Tov, Eli Sharabi, Keith Siegel, Aviva Siegel, Naama Levy, Doron Steinbrecher and Noa Argamani — to the White House. “The President listened intently to their heartbreaking stories,” Leavitt said. "The hostages thanked President Trump for his steadfast efforts to bring all of the hostages home.” Keith Siegel, an Israeli-American released last month as part of the ceasefire, said they came to the White House to express their appreciation to Trump and Witkoff, the Mideast envoy. “We urged them to continue their enormous efforts. They have done so much. We trust them and we know they will get the job done to get all the rest of the 59 remaining hostages held in Gaza back to their families,” he said in a statement. The talks between U.S. and Hamas officials were first reported earlier Wednesday by the news site Axios. Leavitt, the White House press secretary, is one of three administration officials who face a lawsuit from The Associated Press on First- and Fifth-Amendment grounds. The AP says the three are punishing the news agency for editorial decisions they oppose. The White House says the AP is not following an executive order to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.

Hamas handed over the remains of four more Israeli hostages early Thursday in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners as part of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. They are the last four to be released during the first phase of the truce, which is set to end Saturday. Israel and Hamas have yet to negotiate the next phase, and dozens of hostages are still held in Gaza. Hamas transferred the four bodies to the Red Cross early Thursday and they were brought back to Israel for forensic testing. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents families of the captives, said the remains had been positively identified. Under the first phase of the truce, 25 Israeli hostages and the remains of eight others were handed over in exchange for almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Five Thai citizens abducted while working in Israel on the day of the attack were freed last month in a separate deal. Hamas-led militants took 251 hostages during their Oct. 7, 2023, attack that launched the war in Gaza. Fifty-nine hostages remain in Gaza, roughly half of whom are believed to be dead. The others were released in previous agreements, rescued, or their bodies were recovered. Israel’s military campaign has killed over 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were fighters but says more than half were women or children. Here’s a look at the hostages released so far: Ohad Yahalomi, 49 when kidnapped Ohad Yahalomi was shot in the leg as he and his family were taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz. His wife and two daughters, one 10 and the other almost 2, escaped from a moped attempting to take them into Gaza and got away after running through fields for hours. Ohad and his oldest son, Eitan, then 12, were taken into Gaza but held separately. Eitan was released as part of a ceasefire in November 2023. UN halts food aid to famine-hit Sudan displacement camp Yahalomi, who also had French citizenship, was a dedicated runner and swimmer and loved traveling across Israel, according to the hostage forum. Itzhak Elgarat, 68 when kidnapped Elgarat was taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz and was wounded in his hand, according to his brother, who spoke with him that morning. His brother, Danny Elgarat, told Israeli media in July 2024 that they had received information from the Israeli military that Itzhak had likely been killed at some point in early 2024, though there was no confirmation of his death until Hamas said on Wednesday they would return his body. Hostages who were returned in the 2023 ceasefire said they had seen Itzhak in captivity in the early months of the war, his brother told Israeli media. Elgarat also had Danish citizenship. He loved to travel and was a passionate supporter of the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team. Shlomo Mantzur, 85 Mantzur was taken from Kibbutz Kissufim, while his wife of 60 years, Mazal, escaped. He was one of the founders of the kibbutz and had managed the chicken coops for many years. He had five children and 12 grandchildren. He loved working with his hands and studied jewelry-making and carpentry. Born in Iraq, he survived riots against Jews as a child and moved with his family to Israel as a young teenager, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. Trump administration creates registry for immigrants who are in the US illegally Mantzur was the oldest person taken hostage. Earlier this month, the Israeli military confirmed that Mantzur was killed on Oct. 7, 2023, and his body was taken to Gaza. Tsachi Idan, 49 when kidnapped Idan was taken from Kibbutz Nahal Oz. His eldest daughter, Maayan, was killed as militants shot through the door of their saferoom. Hamas militants broadcast themselves on Facebook live holding the Idan family hostage in their home, as his two younger children pleaded with the militants to let them go. Only Tsachi was taken to Gaza. Idan worked in tech and loved playing soccer, volleyball and tennis, according to the hostages forum. Omer Wenkert, 23 Wenkert, a restaurant manager known for his love of dancing and sports, was taken captive from the Nova music festival in southern Israel. Since his abduction, his family was concerned that Wenkert — from the southern Israeli town of Gedera — wasn't getting the medication necessary to treat his colitis, an inflammation of the large intestine. They had not received a sign of life from him since November 2023, when Hamas published footage of Wenkert tied in the back of a pickup truck in his underwear. Omer Shem Tov, 22 Shem Tov, from the Israeli city of Herzliya, was abducted from the Nova music festival with his friends Maya and Itay Regev, former captives who were released in November 2023. He's a passionate musician and DJ, according to the hostage forum. On the day of the Hamas attack on Israel, Shem Tov crammed into a car full of people trying to flee, but the militants shot at them. His family later saw footage of Shem Tov held by militants and bound in the back of a truck. Tal Shoham, 40 Tal Shoham, from the northern Israeli village of Ma’ale Tzviya, was visiting his wife’s family on Kibbutz Be’eri when Hamas militants burned the house where they were hiding, forcing them outside. Hamas hands over the first 2 of 6 Israeli hostages  Shoham, who also has Austrian citizenship, was taken along with his wife, Adi Shoham; his daughter, Yahel, 3; son, Naveh, 8; mother-in-law, Shoshan Haran; his wife’s aunt, Sharon Avigdori; and her daughter, Noam, 12. Three members of their extended family were killed during the attack. The six extended family members were freed in November 2023. His wife, Adi, is a psychologist specializing in trauma. The hostage forum said Shoham volunteered with Israel’s emergency paramedic service and used to be a manager at Kibbutz Be’eri’s printing house. Eliya Cohen, 27 Cohen was at the Nova musical festival when he was taken hostage while hiding in a bomb shelter. His fiancé, Ziv Abud, avoided capture by hiding under a pile of bodies. Cohen is from Tzur Hadassah, a town north of Jerusalem. He works in marketing and real estate. Hostages who have been released in the past weeks said they were held with Cohen, and he had lost more than 20 kilograms (44 pounds) and had a bullet in his leg that did not receive medical attention. He was held in tunnels, chained for most of the time, and was unaware Abud had survived, she said earlier this month. Avera Mengistu, 38 Mengistu had been held in Gaza since entering on his own in 2014. Mengistu is from Ashkelon, a city in southern Israel. His family had no idea if he was alive for nine years, until Hamas released a video of him in January 2023. Mengistu, a member of Israel's Ethiopian minority, entered the territory by crossing a barbed wire fence into Gaza. After he crossed into the Gaza Strip, he was abducted by Hamas. The family told Israeli media he has struggled with mental health issues and he had gone missing within Israel previously. Hisham Al-Sayed, 36 Al-Sayed crossed on his own into Gaza in 2015 and had been held since. He grew up in Al-Sayed, a small Bedouin Arab village near the city of Hura in the Negev Desert. In 2022, Hamas published a video showing him lying in bed with an oxygen mask, though he was conscious. His father told Human Rights Watch that Al-Sayed had run away from home on many occasions. His family told Israeli media he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. “No other hostages should face a decade in captivity,” his family said in a statement shortly before Al-Sayed’s release. The Bibas family The bodies of Ariel and Kfir Bibas were returned Thursday and the remains of their mother, Shiri Bibas, were returned Friday. Hamas said the three were killed in an Israeli airstrike, while Israel says forensic testing showed the boys were killed in captivity in November 2023. Shiri’s husband, Yarden, was also abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023, and was released earlier this month. A video of the family’s abduction showed a terrified Shiri Bibas swaddling her two redheaded sons in a blanket as armed militants surrounded her. The footage ricocheted around the world in the hours after the attack. Ariel was 4 years old at the time and Kfir was 9 months old, making him the youngest captive taken by Hamas. Ariel Bibas loved Batman and family photos showed the four Bibases dressed as the character. Kfir, the infant with red hair and a toothless smile, became a symbol across Israel for the feelings of helplessness and anger over the hostages’ captivity. Oded Lifshitz, 84 The body of Oded Lifshitz, one of the oldest hostages held by the militants, was returned Thursday. He was taken captive from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, along with his wife, Yocheved Lifshitz, who was freed before the first ceasefire agreement. His family said in a statement they had “hoped and prayed so much for a different outcome.” “Now we can mourn the husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather who has been missing from us since October 7,” they said. "Our family’s healing process will begin now and will not end until the last hostage is returned.” Hamas to release 6 Israeli hostages as Israel frees 600 Palestinians Oded and Yocheved Lifshitz are among the founders of Nir Oz. Oded, a journalist, campaigned for the recognition of Palestinian rights and peace between Arabs and Jews. In retirement, he drove to the Erez border crossing on the northern edge of the Gaza Strip once a week to ferry Palestinians to medical appointments in Israel as part of a group called On the Way to Recovery. Oded took pride in his work helping the traditionally nomadic Bedouin people of the Negev Desert, his daughter told The Associated Press, describing a case that went to Israel’s High Court and resulted in the return of some of their land. Sagui Dekel Chen, 36 An Israeli-American, Chen was working outside on his pet project, bus conversions, when militants stormed his kibbutz. He instructed his wife, Avital, to hide in the safe room with their two daughters. Chen, one of the first people to raise alarm of the infiltration on the kibbutz, was taken captive. Avital was seven months pregnant at the time of the attack; she gave birth to a third daughter, Shachar Mazal, in December 2023. Chen is an avid tennis player who co-founded an arts center for young people in southern Israel, according to the hostage forum. Iair Horn, 46 Horn is an Israel-Argentinian who was taken captive along with his brother, Eitan Horn, who was staying with him at the time. Eitan Horn remains in captivity and is not included in the ceasefire’s first phase. Iair Horn managed the kibbutz pub and is a fan of the local soccer team in Beersheba, according to the hostage forum. Alexander (Sasha) Troufanov, 29 Sasha Trufanov, an Israeli-Russian, was taken hostage along with three members of his family: grandmother Irena Tati, mother Yelena (Lena) and girlfriend Sapir Cohen. His father, Vitaly Trufanov, was killed on Oct. 7, 2023. The rest of his family was freed during a weeklong ceasefire in November 2023. Sasha Troufanov works as an engineer for Amazon, according to the hostage forum. His family immigrated to Israel from the Soviet Union 25 years ago. He was held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad, another militant group in Gaza, which has released multiple videos of him in captivity, including one just hours before his release. Eli Sharabi, 52 Eli Sharabi was taken captive by the militants from Kibbutz Beeri, a communal farm that was one of the hardest hit in the Hamas attack. His British-born wife, Lianne, and their teenage daughters, Noiya and Yahel, were killed by militants while hiding in their safe room. His brother, Yossi Sharabi, who lived next door, was killed in captivity. Hamas militants are holding his body, according to the hostage forum. Eli Sharabi’s home bore marks from the attack months later. AP journalists saw bullet holes in the walls and the shattered oven and TV screens. Nearby homes were torched by militants and their roofs blasted off during fighting on Oct. 7. Ohad Ben Ami, 56 Ohad Ben Ami, a father to three, was taken captive with his wife, Raz, from Kibbutz Beeri, where he was an accountant. Raz Ben Ami was released during the weeklong ceasefire in November 2023. Trump living in Russian-made disinformation space: Ukraine's Zelenskyy The hostage forum described Ohad Ben Ami as a “passionate nature enthusiast” and the “cornerstone of his family.” Or Levy, 34 Or Levy was pulled out of a bomb shelter by militants near the Nova music festival in southern Israel. His wife, Einav Levy, was killed during the attack. Their son, Almog, now 3, has been in the care of relatives since the assault. Levy was taken captive alongside American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin as well as two other hostages — Eliya Cohen and Alon Ohel. Goldberg-Polin, whose parents staged a high-profile campaign for his release, was killed in Hamas captivity. Or Levy is from the city of Rishon Lezion, where he worked as a computer programmer for a startup. Keith Siegel, 65 Keith Siegel, from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, was abducted with his wife, Aviva Siegel, from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, a farming community heavily damaged by the attack. She was freed during the November 2023 ceasefire deal, and has campaigned across the world for the release of her husband and other hostages. Aviva Siegel said that she was held hostage with her husband during her 51 days in captivity. She said she took comfort from having her husband by her side as they were moved from tunnel to tunnel, the two given almost no food or water. Her parting words to him were, “Be strong for me.” Ofer Kalderon, 54 Ofer Kalderon, a French-Israeli hostage, was taken captive from Kibbutz Nir Oz. His teenage children, Sahar and Erez, were also abducted and freed during the weeklong ceasefire in 2023. Arbel Yehoud, 29 Arbel Yehoud was taken hostage with her boyfriend, Ariel Cunio, from Kibbutz Nir Oz. A third-generation resident of the kibbutz, she loves science and space, and her friends held a public star gazing to mark her birthday in captivity. Her brother, Dolev Yehoud, was killed on Oct. 7. Agam Berger, 20 In videos of Agam Berger’s abduction, her face is covered in blood, though it’s unclear if it is from her own wound or those of other soldiers. Berger is a violin player from a suburb of Tel Aviv who enlisted in the army just two months before the attack. Berger was released after other female soldiers taken from the Nahal Oz military base. Gadi Moses, 80 Gadi Moses was one of the oldest hostages who remained in captivity in Gaza. Pakistan plans to expel entire Afghan refugee population: Afghan Embassy He was taken from his home on Kibbutz Nir Oz, one of the communities hardest-hit in the Hamas-led attack. The hostage forum described Moses as an expert agronomist who lectured on agriculture and helped maintain the kibbutz’s vegetable garden. Moses’ partner, Efrat, was killed during the attack. Watchara Sriaoun, 33 In the Oct. 7 attack, militants overran the compound where agricultural workers lived on Kibbutz Nir Oz. Out of the 16 Thai workers living there, 11 were killed and five, including Watchara Sriaoun, were abducted. They were among at least 31 Thai workers taken in the assault. In the November 2023 ceasefire, 23 were released in a deal negotiated between Thailand and Hamas, with assistance from Qatar and Iran. Sathian Suwannakham, 35 Sathian Suwannakham was also taken from Nir Oz. The kibbutz has continued to advocate for the release of the Thai workers by posting regularly about them on social media, in addition to the Israeli hostages. Surasak Rumnao, 32 Surasak Rumnao was abducted from the town of Yesha, located near the southern Gaza Strip. His mother, Khammee Lamnao, said the Thai Embassy in Israel called her to let her know her son would be released. Pongsak Thaenna, 36 Pongsak Thaenna was also taken from the town of Yesha. Thais make up the largest group of foreigners held in Gaza. In the early days after the Oct. 7 attack, then-Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in phone conversations to assist the Thai hostages. Bannawat Saethao, 27 Bannawat Saethao was also abducted from the town of Yesha. Liri Albag, 19 Liri Albag, who was among those abducted from the Nahal Oz military base, was featured in a video Hamas released in early January, filmed under duress. Her family said the video was “difficult to watch” because of Albag’s clear emotional distress. They were particularly active in the protest movement pushing for a deal with Hamas to bring the hostages home. Karina Ariev, 20 Karina Ariev was also taken from Nahal Oz. Just before she was abducted, she she sent a message to her family, saying: “If I don’t live, take care of mom and dad all their lives. Don’t give up, live,” according to Israeli media. Her family said she loves to cook, sing, dance and write poetry. Daniella Gilboa, 20 Also taken from Nahal Oz, Daniella Gilboa was originally named Danielle. Her parents changed it after she was taken captive, in line with a Jewish tradition that is believed to bring God’s protection. Gilboa, from Petah Tikva, a suburb of Tel Aviv, played piano and studied music in high school. She dreams of being a singer, according to Israeli media. Naama Levy, 20 The footage from Naama Levy’s abduction, in which she is wearing gray sweatpants covered in blood, was shown around the world. Levy, among those taken from Nahal Oz, is a triathlete. When she was younger, she participated in the “Hands of Peace” delegation, which brings together Americans, Israelis and Palestinians to work on coexistence. Romi Gonen, 24 Romi Gonen was taken from the Nova music festival in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. She spoke to her family for nearly five hours as militants marauded through the festival grounds. She told them that roads clogged with abandoned cars made escape impossible and that she would seek shelter in some bushes. Her father, Eitan Goren, said she survived in part by learning Arabic, as it was the only way to communicate with her captors. “I just enjoy being with her even in silence, touching, hugging, watching her,” he said, a week after her release. “I missed it so much.” Emily Damari, 28 Emily Damari is a British-Israeli citizen abducted from her apartment on Kibbutz Kfar Aza. She lived in a small apartment in a neighborhood for young adults, the closest part of the kibbutz to Gaza. Militants broke through the border fence of the kibbutz and ransacked the neighborhood. The day after her release, Emily’s mother, Mandy, said her daughter was “in high spirits and on the road to recovery.” Doron Steinbrecher, 31 Doron Steinbrecher is a veterinary nurse who loves animals, and a neighbor to Damari in Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Steinbrecher holds both Israeli and Romanian citizenship. Steinbrecher was featured in a video released by Hamas in January 2024, along with two female Israeli soldiers. Her brother said the video gave them hope that she was alive but sparked concern because she looked tired, weak and gaunt.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday fully endorsed Israel's war aims in the Gaza Strip, saying Hamas “must be eradicated” and throwing the shaky ceasefire into further doubt. Rubio met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem at the start of a regional tour, where he is likely to face pushback from Arab leaders over President Donald Trump's proposal to transfer the Palestinian population out of Gaza and redevelop it under US ownership. Netanyahu has welcomed the plan, and said he and Trump have a “common strategy” for Gaza's future. Echoing Trump, he said "the gates of hell would be open” if Hamas does not release dozens of remaining hostages abducted in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the 16-month war. Their remarks came two weeks before the ceasefire's first phase is set to end. The second phase, in which Hamas is to release dozens of remaining hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, has yet to be negotiated. Ceasefire deal should be canceled if Hamas doesn’t release all hostages by Saturday: Trump Rubio said Hamas cannot continue as a military or government force. “As long as it stands as a force that can govern or as a force that can administer or as a force that can threaten by use of violence, peace becomes impossible,” he said. "It must be eradicated.” Such language could complicate continued talks with Hamas, which remains in control of Gaza despite suffering heavy losses in the war. Rubio is also set to visit regional heavyweights the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. The Israeli military meanwhile said it carried out an airstrike Sunday on people who approached its forces in southern Gaza. The Hamas-run Interior Ministry said the strike killed three of its policemen while they were securing the entry of aid trucks near Rafah, on the Egyptian border. Hamas called the attack a “serious violation” of the ceasefire and accused Netanyahu of trying to sabotage the deal.

Israel kept thousands of Palestinians from returning to their homes in northern Gaza on Sunday as it accused Hamas of violating a fragile ceasefire by changing the order of hostages it has released. Local health officials said Israeli forces fired on the crowd, killing two people and wounding nine. Israeli forces also opened fire in Lebanon on protesters demanding their withdrawal by Sunday's deadline in line with a separate ceasefire agreement with the Hezbollah militant group. Health officials in Lebanon said at least 15 people were killed and more than 80 wounded, AP reports. Israel says it hasn't withdrawn because Lebanese forces are not deploying quickly enough, while Lebanon says its forces cannot move into areas until Israeli troops leave. US President Donald Trump meanwhile suggested that most of Gaza's population should be at least temporarily resettled elsewhere, including in Egypt and Jordan, to “just clean out” the war-ravaged enclave. Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinians have previously rejected such a scenario, fearing Israel might never allow refugees to return. Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said Palestinians would never accept such a proposal, “even if seemingly well-intentioned under the guise of reconstruction.” He said the Palestinians can rebuild Gaza “even better than before” if Israel lifts its blockade. Trump putting pressure on Jordan and Egypt to accept more refugees and floats plan to 'just clean out' Gaza Under the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, Israel on Saturday was to begin allowing Palestinians to return to their homes in northern Gaza on foot through the Netzarim corridor bisecting Gaza. Israel put that on hold until Hamas frees a civilian hostage who Israel said should have been released Saturday. Hamas in turn accused Israel of violating the agreement. Crowds of people carrying their belongings filled a main road leading to a closed Israeli checkpoint. “We have been in agony for a year and a half,” said Nadia Qasem. Fadi al-Sinwar, also displaced from Gaza City, said “the fate of more than a million people is linked to one person,” referring to the Israeli hostage, Arbel Yehoud. “See how valuable we are? We are worthless," he said.

Israel and Hamas were expected to swap more hostages for Palestinian prisoners on Saturday, the second such exchange since a ceasefire began in the Gaza Strip last weekend and another test for the deal. The truce is aimed at winding down the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought between Israel and the militant group. The fragile deal has so far held, quieting airstrikes and rockets and allowing for increased aid to flow into the tiny coastal territory. When the ceasefire started Sunday, three hostages held by the militants were released in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners. On Saturday, four hostages are expected to be freed for 200 prisoners, including 120 who are serving life sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks on Israelis. They will likely be released into Gaza or sent abroad. The four Israeli soldiers, Karina Ariev, 20; Daniella Gilboa, 20; Naama Levy, 20; and Liri Albag, 19, were captured in Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack that ignited the war. Syria's economic struggles persist despite Assad's ousting They were taken from Nahal Oz base near the border with Gaza when Palestinian militants overran it, killing more than 60 soldiers there. The female abductees had all served in a unit of lookouts charged with monitoring threats along the border. A fifth female soldier in their unit, Agam Berger, 20, was abducted with them but not included in the list. After the swap, Israel is expected to begin pulling back from the Netzarim corridor — an east-west road dividing Gaza in two — and allowing displaced Palestinians in the south to return to their former homes in the north for the first time since the beginning of the war. Palestinians will only be allowed to move north on foot, with vehicular traffic restricted until later in the ceasefire. What happens after the deal’s initial six-week phase is uncertain, but many hope it will lead to the end of a war that has leveled wide swaths of Gaza, displaced the vast majority of its population, and left hundreds of thousands of people at risk of famine. The conflict began with a cross-border attack led by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, when Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 others hostage. Bittersweet feeling for Palestinians freed from Israeli prisons More than 100 hostages were freed in a weeklong truce the following month. But dozens have remained in captivity for over a year with no contact with the outside world. Israel believes at least a third of the more than 90 captives still inside Gaza were killed in the initial attack or died in captivity. Israel's air and ground war, one of the deadliest and most destructive in decades, has killed over 47,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who do not say how many were militants. They say women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Wednesday that a ceasefire agreement with Hamas is still not complete and the final details are being worked out. Netanyahu's statement comes hours after the United States and Qatar announced the deal, which would pause the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clear the way for dozens of hostages to go home. The conflict has destabilized the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests. However, he said that Hamas has backtracked on an earlier understanding of the ceasefire agreement. His statement could indicate that obstacles remain to implementing the deal. Under the three-phased deal, Hamas would release dozens of hostages in exchange for Israel releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. It would also allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced in Gaza to return to what remains of their homes. Israel, Hamas agree to ceasefire and hostage release: Mediators Netanyahu said that Hamas was objecting to a part of the agreement that gave Israel the ability to veto the release of certain Palestinian prisoners. Hamas was trying to dictate which Palestinian prisoners would be released, Netanyahu said. He said he told Israeli negotiators to stand firm on the earlier agreement. Hamas did not immediately respond to Netanyahu’s statement. The statement came soon after President Joe Biden wrapped up a final farewell address to the nation after earlier touting the role of American diplomacy in negotiating the ceasefire. The Israel Hamas-war has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to health authorities there. The Health Ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians, but says women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal, mediators announced Wednesday, pausing a devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip and raising the possibility of winding down the the deadliest and most destructive fighting between the bitter enemies. The deal, coming after weeks of painstaking negotiations in the Qatari capital, promises the release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas in phases, the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israel and would allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced in Gaza to return to what remains of their homes. It also would flood badly needed humanitarian aid into a devastated territory. Three officials from the US and one from Hamas confirmed that a deal had been reached, while a senior Israeli official said details are still being ironed out. All three US officials requested anonymity to discuss the contours of the deal before the official announcement by mediators in Doha. Hamas accepts draft agreement for Gaza ceasefire, release of hostages President Joe Biden was preparing to address the breakthrough agreement later Thursday, officials said. Any agreement still needs to be approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet, but is expected to go into effect in the coming days. The deal is expected to deliver an initial six-week halt to fighting that is to be accompanied by the opening of negotiations on ending the war altogether. Over six weeks, 33 of the nearly 100 hostages are to be reunited with their loved ones after months in in captivity with no contact with the outside world, though it’s unclear if all are alive. It remained unclear exactly when and how many displaced Palestinians would be able to return to what remains of their homes and whether the agreement would lead to a complete end to the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza — key Hamas demands for releasing the remaining captives. Israeli strikes kill 18 in Gaza, including women and children Many longer-term questions about postwar Gaza remain, including who will rule the territory or oversee the daunting task of reconstruction. Still, the announcement offered the first sign of hope in months that Israel and Hamas may be winding down the most deadly and destructive war they’ve ever fought, a conflict that has destabilized the broader Middle East and sparked worldwide protests. Hamas triggered the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border attack, which killed some 1,200 Israelis and took 250 others hostage. Israel responded with a fierce offensive that has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, displaced an estimated 90% of Gaza’s population and sparked a humanitarian crisis. More than 100 hostages were freed from Gaza in a weeklong truce in November 2023.

Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip killed at least 18 people overnight, including women and children, health officials said Tuesday, as Israel and Hamas appeared to be narrowing in on a ceasefire deal to end the 15-month war and release dozens of hostages. Officials have expressed mounting optimism that they can conclude an agreement in the coming days after more than a year of talks that have repeatedly stalled, AP reports. Two strikes in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah killed two women and their four children, who ranged in age from 1 month to 9 years old. One of the women was pregnant and the baby did not survive, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies. Another 12 people were killed in two strikes on the southern city of Khan Younis, according to the European Hospital. Rescuers attempt to free survivors from trapped South African miners There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Israel says it only targets militants and accuses them of hiding among civilians in shelters and tent camps for the displaced. Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants stormed into southern Israel and killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. A third of the 100 hostages still held in Gaza are believed to be dead. The Israel Hamas-war has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to health authorities there. The Health Ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians, but says women and children make up more than half the fatalities. Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump has described a possible ceasefire as being “very close.” “I understand ... there’s been a handshake and they are getting it finished -- and maybe by the end of the week,” Trump told the American cable channel Newsmax Monday night. A missile fired by Houthi rebels targets central Israel as airstrikes hit displaced area in Gaza He added that part of the deal would see “bodies” brought out of the Gaza Strip, without elaborating. Israel and Hamas are under renewed pressure to halt the conflict in the lead-up to Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration. The phased deal would be based on a framework laid out by President Joe Biden in May and endorsed by the UN Security Council.