IDF messaging suggests Gaza truce unlikely to last much beyond Tuesday

Many expect pause to be extended if more hostages are released, but experts predict military campaign could run into next year

Gaza’s truce is unlikely to last significantly beyond Tuesday, with Israel’s military stepping up pressure on Sunday to restart the air and ground offensive in a campaign that some experts predict could run into next year.

The four-day halt in fighting, described by the Israel DefenceForces (IDF) as “an operational pause”, is scheduled to end on 7am on Tuesday if the agreed transfer of 50 hostages held by Hamas and others in Gaza goes to plan.

Continue reading...

Syria says Israeli strikes put Damascus airport out of service – as it happened

This bog is now closed. All our Israel-Hamas war coverage can be seen here.

Israel’s military has issued a statement about its activity in Jenin in the occupied West Bank overnight. In a post to social media, it said:

In the operation commanded by the 646th Reserve Brigade, five terrorists were eliminated, 21 wanted persons were arrested, a cargo laboratory was destroyed and an aircraft attacked from the air an armed terrorist squad that endangered the IDF forces.

Continue reading...

‘Overjoyed’: nine-year-old hostage Emily Hand returns to family in Israel

Relatives say they ‘can’t find the words to describe our emotions’ as Israeli-Irish girl comes back from Gaza

The family and friends of Emily Hand have spoken of their joy after Hamas released the nine-year-old Israeli-Irish girl from captivity in Gaza late on Saturday.

“Emily has come back to us,” her father, Thomas Hand, said after an emotional reunion at a hospital in Israel.

Continue reading...

Sixty-one trucks deliver aid to northern Gaza, says UN – as it happened

This blog is now closed. All our Israel-Hamas war coverage is here.

Here are some pictures of Yaffa Adar, 85, as she was reunited with her family after being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza.

She had been kidnapped from Nir Oz and taken into the Gaza Strip in a golf cart on 7 October.

Continue reading...

Israel releases 39 Palestinian prisoners as Hamas frees 17 hostages in latest stage of ceasefire deal

Exchange takes place after ceasefire was plunged into crisis when Hamas accused Israel of blocking aid convoys

Prison authorities in Israel announced early on Sunday that they had released 39 Palestinian prisoners after Hamas freed 13 Israelis and four Thai nationals in the latest stage of a four-day ceasefire.

Television footage showed hostages on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing after leaving Gaza, as Hamas handed over the captives to the International Committee of the Red Cross late on Saturday.

Continue reading...

Hair, makeup and hopefully a sister back home: Palestinians await prisoner release

With 42 women and children set to be released under the ceasefire deal, hopes for family reunions are running high in the West Bank

The daughters of the Awad family were busy dressing up at their home in Qalandiya, on the West Bank side of the notorious checkpoint, on Saturday evening. Hair was curled and eyeliner applied; all four chose outfits in black and white to match their Palestinian keffiyeh scarves. The celebration was to mark the unexpected release of their big sister, Noorhan, 24, from prison in Israel. She was jailed eight years ago; the youngest, 10-year-old Mayar, does not remember her.

Their community centre was decked out with Palestinian flags and posters of Noorhan and two other young people from the neighbourhood. “So much has changed since Noorhan was home last,” said her mother Sumaya. “We are so excited. I don’t want to hope too much.”

Continue reading...

Who are the first hostages released from Gaza?

Hamas released 24 hostages on Friday, including 13 Israelis, one Filipino man and 10 Thai citizens

The group of hostages brought out of Gaza on the first day of the ceasefire with Israel included 13 Israelis, 10 Thai citizens and one Filipino man.

The Israeli hostages included four children with female relatives, who were all visiting family at Nir Oz kibbutz when Hamas attacked on 7 October, and five elderly women, four of them residents of Nir Oz and one from a nearby kibbutz.

Continue reading...

‘Everybody is crying’: Thai relatives welcome release of hostages by Hamas

Group of nine men and one woman being treated in hospital before returning to Thailand to reunite with families

The 10 Thai hostages released on Friday are now being supervised in an Israeli hospital, the Thai government has said, adding that a further 20 of its nationals are still being held hostage.

In a statement, Thailand’s ministry of foreign affairs said the 10, who were among 24 hostages freed on Friday hours after a ceasefire was implemented, were now being accompanied by embassy officials and were staying at Shamir medical centre, south-east of Tel Aviv.

Continue reading...

Thailand’s PM says 12 of its citizens held hostage by Hamas have been freed

Srettha Thavisin confirms release of a dozen of at least 26 nationals being held after weeks of negotiations

A dozen of the 26 Thai nationals taken hostage by Hamas in the 7 October attacks in Israel have been released, Thailand’s prime minister has said.

Srettha Thavisin said on X he had received confirmation of their release, and that Thai embassy officials were going to pick them up.

Continue reading...

Hamas releases 24 hostages on first day of Gaza ceasefire

On day of high tension, Israel also releases Palestinian prisoners and humanitarian convoy enters Gaza

The first group of hostages walked free from Gaza on Friday on a day of high tension and profound relief – but also acute concern for the future after weeks of relentless violence in the war between Israel and Hamas.

Twenty-four hostages were released by Hamas – 13 Israelis, 10 Thais and a Philippine national – as part of a deal that has brought about a temporary pause in hostilities and includes the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

Continue reading...

David Cameron expresses hopes over temporary truce during visit to Israel

UK foreign secretary hopes situation will provide opportunity to ‘get hostages out and get aid into Gaza’

David Cameron has met Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, during a visit to Israel, expressing hope that the planned temporary truce with Hamas would be an “opportunity to crucially get hostages out and get aid into Gaza”.

The ceasefire is due to begin on Friday morning from 7am local time, with aid “going in as soon as possible”, according to Qatari officials. The first set of civilians held captive by Hamas are expected to be freed at about 4pm local time on Friday, including 13 women and children.

Continue reading...

Israel arrests Gaza hospital director and bombs 300 targets amid truce delay

IDF claims al-Shifa hospital was Hamas command and control centre as footage of tunnels and underground rooms appears

Israel’s army has arrested the director of Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital and bombed at least 300 targets from the air, killing dozens of Palestinians, as an agreed four-day truce was delayed until Friday.

Mohammad abu Salmiya and other medics were detained, a colleague said, amid reports that members of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) had seized them as they were travelling with a World Health Organization evacuation convoy.

Continue reading...

Gaza ceasefire to begin on Friday morning with hostage releases to follow

Negotiators work out final details of four-day truce between Israel and Hamas after seven weeks of conflict

A four-day ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas will begin on Friday morning, a day later than originally announced, after negotiators worked out final details of the deal, which will lead to the release of dozens of hostages held by militants as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

The diplomatic breakthrough promises the first pause in seven weeks of war in Gaza and some relief both for the 2.3 million Palestinians in the territory who have endured intensive Israeli bombardment, and for families in Israel fearful for the fate of their loved ones taken captive during the bloody attack launched last month by Hamas that triggered the conflict.

Continue reading...

Harvard journal accused of censoring article blaming Israel for Gaza genocide

Harvard Law Review declined an essay by Palestinian doctoral candidate Rabea Eghbariah after it had been initially approved

A prestigious journal published by Harvard Law School has been accused of censorship after it refused to publish an academic article accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, allegedly because editors feared a backlash.

The Harvard Law Review, which is run by the school’s student body, declined the 2,000-word essay – titled The Ongoing Nakba: Towards a Legal Framework for Palestine – by a Palestinian doctoral candidate, Rabea Eghbariah, after it had been edited, fact-checked and initially approved.

Continue reading...

Israel-Hamas war opens up German debate over meaning of ‘Never again’

Intellectuals clash over country’s traditional commitment to defence of Israel amid bloodshed in Gaza

The phrase “Never again” has been the central tenet of Germany’s political identity since the horrors of the Nazi-led Holocaust of Europe’s Jewish population. But the war between Israel and Hamas has opened up a fiercely fought debate about the phrase’s true meaning,dividing opinion among followers of the dominant German intellectual tradition.

A letter published in the Guardian pits several prominent German and international figures influenced by the Frankfurt School of neo-Marxist “critical theory” against its most prominent living member, Jürgen Habermas. They argue that “Never again” must also mean staying alert to the possibility that what is unfolding in Gaza could amount to genocide.

Continue reading...

Netanyahu avoids political rebellion over Hamas hostage deal but ally calls it ‘immoral’

Israel’s prime minister facing pressure from all sides as some say ceasefire agreement does not go far enough

Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has managed to avert a wider rebellion over the Gaza deal with Hamas among his far-right coalition partners even as Itamar Ben-Gvir, the firebrand national security minister, called it immoral.

Three ministers, all from Ben-Gvir’s far-right Jewish Power party, oppose the deal but members of the equally hardline Religious Zionist party were persuaded to support the deal after heated exchanges in an Israeli cabinet meeting late on Tuesday night.

Continue reading...

Over 100 Palestinians reported killed in Gaza as attack continues despite ceasefire deal

Houses in centre of strip said to have been targeted, killing 81, with 60 more believed dead in north

More than 100 Palestinians in Gaza were reported killed on Wednesday as Israeli forces continued attacking across the strip from land, sea and air hours after the agreement for a ceasefire to begin on Thursday.

Wafa, a Palestinian news agency, said 81 people had been killed since midnight as houses were targeted in the centre of the strip. A further 60 were believed to be dead after bombing in and around the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north.

Continue reading...

Gaza ceasefire deal brings relief but little hope of durable peace

Israeli military and intelligence services reported to have backed deal but are clearly committed to continuing efforts to ‘crush’ Hamas

Very many people – in Israel, the occupied territories, the Middle East and well beyond – will feel immense relief at the news of a ceasefire and hostage deal.

But the provisional nature of the pause in the Israeli offensive into Gaza combined with the number of captives remaining with Hamas mean any hopes of a definitive end to hostilities remain tragically slender.

Continue reading...

Israel-Hamas war: son of senior Hezbollah lawmaker killed in strike on Lebanon border – as it happened

This blog has now closed. You can read our full report on the latest news here

Here is everything we know about the deal to release hostages from Gaza, pause fighting for four days and release Palestinian prisoners:

US President Joe Biden has released a statement welcoming the deal for a pause in fighting and the release of hostages and prisoners. Biden thanks, “Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt for their critical leadership and partnership in reaching this deal”.

I welcome the deal to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist group Hamas during its brutal assault against Israel on October 7th.



I thank Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt for their critical leadership and partnership in reaching this deal. And I appreciate the commitment that Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government have made in supporting an extended pause to ensure this deal can be fully carried out and to ensure the provision of additional humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering of innocent Palestinian families in Gaza. […] It is important that all aspects of this deal be fully implemented.

Today’s deal should bring home additional American hostages, and I will not stop until they are all released.

Continue reading...

Israel and Hamas agree deal for release of some hostages and four-day ceasefire

Fifty Israeli hostages held in Gaza will be freed over four days in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners and a lull in Israeli military operations

Israel and Hamas have agreed a deal for the release of 50 women and children hostages held in Gaza in return for 150 Palestinian women and children to be freed from Israeli jails during a four-day ceasefire, both sides announced on Wednesday morning.

The deal was confirmed by a senior US official, who told reporters that the freed hostages would include three Americans, one of them a three year-old girl. The official said that the first hostage release is expected on Thursday morning, and the total number of hostages freed could rise.

Continue reading...