Page 13 - Gaza Conflict

Netanyahu warns of ending Gaza ceasefire if hostages not returned on Feb 15

After nearly 16 months of war, Hamas has gradually been releasing hostages since the first phase of a ceasefire began on January 19, but on Monday said it would not free any more

With ceasefire in question, Israel orders to beef up troops around Gaza

An Israeli official says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the army to beef up troops in and around the Gaza Strip after Hamas threatened to call off a scheduled hostage release on Saturday. The official said Netanyahu also ordered officials to prepare for every scenario if Hamas doesn't release our hostages this Saturday. The preparation plans come after Netanyahu met with his Security Cabinet for four hours on Tuesday to discuss Hamas' threat, which has put the fragile ceasefire agreement in danger. Under the ceasefire, Hamas has released 21 hostages in a series of exchanges for Palestinian prisoners. But it said Monday it was delaying the next release of three more hostages after accusing Israel of failing to allow enough aid into Gaza under the deal. President Donald Trump has said Israel should cancel the entire ceasefire if all of the roughly 70 hostages held by Hamas aren't freed by Saturday. The Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a

'Will relocate them to beautiful areas of Middle East': Trump on Gaza plan

Donald Trump had proposed US control over Gaza, pledging reconstruction and economic revival; Netanyahu calls it a 'historic shift' that could reshape the region's future

Hamas brushes off Trump's threat, says all must be committed to ceasefire

Hamas has brushed off President Donald Trump's threat that all hell will break out if it does not release the remaining Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip by Saturday. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Tuesday that the dozens of hostages would only be returned if all parties remain committed to a ceasefire deal reached last month. Trump must remember there is an agreement that must be respected by both parties, he said, adding that threatening language only complicates matters. Hamas has threatened to delay the next release of three Israeli hostages, due Saturday, accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement, including by not allowing a surge of tents and shelters into the devastated territory. While Trump said the ceasefire should be cancelled if Hamas doesn't release all the remaining hostages Saturday, he also said such a decision would be up to Israel. During the first phase of the ceasefire, Hamas has committed to freeing a total of 33 hostages captured in its

Trump threatens to cut aid to Jordan, Egypt if they refute Gaza relocation

US President Donald Trump doubled down on his redevelopment plan for Gaza, stating that Palestinians relocated would not be allowed to return

After ceasefire in Gaza, West Bank Palestinians face more Israeli barriers

Abdullah Fauzi, a banker from the northern West Bank city of Nablus, leaves home at 4 a.m. to reach his job by 8, and he's often late. His commute used to take an hour until Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, after which Israel launched its offensive in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military also ramped up raids against Palestinian militants in the northern West Bank, and diverted its residents through seven new checkpoints, doubling Fauzi's time on the road. Now it's gotten worse. Since the ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas took effect, Fauzi's drive to the West Bank's business and administrative hub, Ramallah, has become a convoluted, at least four-hour wiggle through steep lanes and farm roads as Israel further tightens the noose around Palestinian cities in measures it considers essential to guard against militant attacks. You can fly to Paris while we're not reaching our homes," the 42-year-old said from the Atara checkpoint outside Ramallah last week, as Isr

Trump says losing patience, compares freed Israelis to Holocaust survivors

New details and growing shock over emaciated hostages renewed pressure Sunday on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend a fragile Gaza ceasefire beyond the first phase, even as US President Donald Trump repeated his pledge that the US would take control of the Palestinian enclave. Talks on the second phase, meant to see more hostages released and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, were due to start February 3. But Israel and Hamas appear to have made little progress, even as Israeli forces withdrew Sunday from a Gaza corridor in the latest commitment to the truce. Netanyahu sent a delegation to Qatar, a key mediator, but it included low-level officials, sparking speculation that it won't lead to a breakthrough. Netanyahu, who returned after a U.S. visit to meet with Trump, is expected to convene security Cabinet ministers on Tuesday. Speaking on Sunday, Trump repeated his pledge to take control of the Gaza Strip. I'm committed to buying and owning Gaza. As far as

Pressure mounts on extending Gaza ceasefire as details on hostages emerge

New details and growing shock over emaciated hostages renewed pressure Sunday on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend a fragile Gaza ceasefire beyond the first phase ending in three weeks. Talks on the second phase, meant to see more hostages released and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, were due to start Feb. 3. But Israel and Hamas appear to have made little progress, even as Israeli forces withdrew Sunday from a Gaza corridor in the latest commitment to the truce. Netanyahu sent a delegation to Qatar, a key mediator, but it included low-level officials, sparking speculation that it won't lead to a breakthrough. Netanyahu, who returned after a U.S. visit to meet with President Donald Trump, is expected to convene security Cabinet ministers on Tuesday. Trump himself suggested he was losing patience with the deal after seeing the emaciated hostages released this week. I watched the hostages come back today and they looked like Holocaust survivors. They were i

Germany's Scholz calls Trump's Gaza proposal 'scandal' in poll debate

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz described President Donald Trump's suggestion that the US could take ownership of the Gaza Strip, relocate its population and redevelop it as a scandal in a pre-election debate Sunday. His main challenger also voiced unease but suggested there's a lot of rhetoric coming from Washington. The center-left Scholz and center-right challenger Friedrich Merz, the front-runner in the Feb. 23 election, discussed top domestic issues such as Germany's struggling economy and migration, and also addressed foreign policy three weeks into Trump's new term. Asked what he made of Trump's proposal to redevelop Gaza into the Riviera of the Middle East," Scholz replied: A scandal. Besides that, a really terrible expression," given the extent of the destruction that is now visible there. The relocation of populations is unacceptable and against international law, he added in the debate on ARD and ZDF public television. He pointed to the position of Egypt and Jordan. I shar

Hamas frees three more Israeli hostages in exchange for 183 Palestinians

Hamas-led militants released three gaunt, frail-looking Israeli hostages on Saturday, and Israel freed 183 Palestinian prisoners as part of a fragile agreement that has paused the war in the Gaza Strip. The hostages' emaciated condition and scenes of Hamas forcing them to speak in a staged release ceremony sparked outrage in Israel and could increase the pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend the ceasefire beyond its current six-week phase. Netanyahu has previously signalled he would resume the war, even if that meant leaving dozens of remaining hostages in Hamas captivity. Before a crowd of hundreds, armed Hamas fighters led Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad Ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34, onto a stage to make public statements before handing them over to the Red Cross. The three civilian men were among about 250 people abducted during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, that sparked the war. They appeared in much poorer physical condition than the previous 18 ..

Hamas names 3 hostages to be freed, accuses Israel of breaching ceasefire

The Hamas prisoners' media office said Israel was expected to free 183 Palestinians in exchange, including 18 who have been serving life sentences

Future looks dire for UN Palestinian refugee agency amid ban: UNRWA chief

The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said Thursday that while an Israeli ban has not yet forced the agency to cease operations, it faces an existential threat in the long run. I have been very clear that despite all the obstacles and the pressure the agency is under, our objective is to stay and deliver until we are prevented to do so, Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, also known as UNRWA, said in an interview with The Associated Press during a visit to Beirut. Israel last week formally banned UNRWA from operating on its territory. As a result, Lazzarini said, international staff have had to leave East Jerusalem because their visas expired, but in Gaza and the West Bank there has been no immediate impact on operations. Even in East Jerusalem, he said, health care and other services provided by UNRWA "are continuing, though not necessarily at the same scope it used to be. UNRWA is also likely to face increased pressure from

Trump signs order imposing sanctions on ICC over investigations of Israel

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court over investigations of Israel, a close U.S. ally. Neither the U.S. nor Israel is a member of or recognizes the court, which has issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes over his military response in Gaza after the Hamas attack against Israel in October 2023. Tens of thousands of Palestinians, including children, have been killed during the Israeli military's response. The order Trump signed accuses the ICC of engaging in illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel" and of abusing its power by issuing baseless arrest warrants against Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant. The ICC has no jurisdiction over the United States or Israel, the order states, adding that the court had set a dangerous precedent with its actions against both countries. Trump's action came as .

Israel to turn Gaza strip over to US after fighting ends, says Trump

Trump said that Gaza Strip would be turned over to US by Israel at conclusion of fighting. The Palestinians ... would have already been resettled in far safer and more beautiful communities, he said

US allies, adversaries reject Trump's proposal to 'take over' Gaza Strip

President Donald Trump's proposal that the United States take over the Gaza Strip and permanently resettle its Palestinian residents was swiftly rejected and denounced on Wednesday by American allies and adversaries alike. Trump's suggestion came at a White House news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who smiled several times as the president detailed a plan to build new settlements for Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip, and for the US to take ownership in redeveloping the war-torn territory into the Riviera of the Middle East. The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too, Trump said. We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs. His remarks drew swift opposition and were certain to roil the ceasefire talks between Ham

Won't establish ties with Israel without Palestinian state: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia refutes Donald Trump's claim that it hasn't insisted on a Palestinian state, reaffirming no Israel ties without it; Trump also proposed a US takeover and redevelopment of Gaza

US will 'take over' the Gaza strip, own it and develop it, says Trump

Trump said we're going to own and develop the Gaza strip, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it'll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of

Trump sees 'long-term' US ownership of Gaza, doesn't dismiss using military

President Donald Trump said Tuesday he isn't ruling out deploying U.S. troops to support reconstruction of Gaza and he envisions long-term U.S. ownership of a redevelopment of the territory. We'll do what is necessary, Trump said about the possibility of deploying troops to fill any security vacuum. If it's necessary, we'll do that. The comments came after Trump said he wants the U.S. to take ownership of the Gaza Strip and redevelop it after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere. We will own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, Trump said a start of a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump added the U.S. would level destroyed buildings and create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area. The comments came after Trump earlier suggested that displaced Palestinians in Gaza be permanently resettled outside the war-t

Israel to send team to Qatar to discuss 2nd phase of ceasefire with Hamas

The ongoing 1st phase of ceasefire is supposed to see a total of 33 Israeli hostages freed over 6 weeks. The fate of remaining 65 hostages will be determined by negotiations to begin on 16th day

Trump holds talks with Netanyahu, warns 'no guarantees' for peace in Gaza

President Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are set to meet Tuesday as the Israeli prime minister faces competing pressure from his right-wing coalition to end a temporary truce against Hamas militants in Gaza and from war-weary Israelis who want the remaining hostages home and the 15-month conflict to end. Trump is guarded about the long-term prospects for the truce, even as he takes credit for pressuring Hamas and Israel into the hostage and ceasefire agreement that went into effect the day before he returned to office last month. I have no guarantees that the peace is going to hold," Trump told reporters Monday. The leaders' talks are expected to touch on a long-sought Israel-Saudi Arabia normalization deal and concerns about Iran's nuclear program, but hammering out the second phase of the hostage deal will be at the top of the agenda. Netanyahu's arrival in Washington for the first foreign leader visit of Trump's second term comes as the prime minister's popular support is .