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CNN —Israel will expand military operations in the southernmost Gazan city of Rafah if hostages held by Hamas are not returned by the start of Ramadan, war cabinet minister Benny Gantz has warned. Israel believes that 130 hostages remain in Gaza – 101 alive and 29 dead – following Hamas’ October 7 attacks, which killed around 1,200 people in Israel. The comments come amid stuttering talks aimed at securing the release of hostages and a longer-term ceasefire in Gaza. Egypt’s security buildup comes amid fears of the war spilling over into its territory should Israel begin its operation in Rafah. The Israeli military said it had credible evidence that Hamas had previously held hostages at the hospital, and that the bodies of deceased hostages may be at the medical complex.
Persons: CNN —, Benny Gantz, Ramadan, ” Gantz, , Israel, , Israel’s, Israel –, Benjamin Netanyahu, Khan Younis, Mohammed Salem, Martin Griffiths, Sameh Shoukry, ” Shoukry, Abed Rahim Khatib Organizations: CNN, Hamas, United Nations, Sunday, Sky News, Anadolu, Getty, Hospital Locations: CNN — Israel, Gazan, Rafah, Jerusalem, Gaza, Israel, , Nasser, Khan, United States, , Egypt
If the buffer zone — which stretches from the end of the Gaza border to the Mediterranean Sea — is completed, it will completely engulf the Egyptian-Rafah border crossing complex. Additional satellite imagery reviewed by CNN shows that bulldozers arrived on site on February 3, and the initial excavation of the buffer zone began on February 6. CNN has reached out to the Egyptian government for comment on the buffer zone and wall construction. This satellite image from Maxar Technologies shows Egypt building a massive miles-wide buffer zone, and border wall, along its border with Gaza. Israel has been accused of constructing its own buffer zone, but within Gaza, which would effectively shrink the enclave’s borders.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, , Peter Lerner, Rajaa Musleh, , ” Musleh, Fabrizio Carboni, Israel’s, Gazans, Israel, Netanyahu, Volker Türk, , ” Türk Organizations: CNN, Maxar Technologies, Sinai Foundation, Human Rights, Gaza Maxar Technologies, Israel Defense Forces, International Committee, Red Cross, New Zealand, UN, Human, IDF Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Egypt’s, Gazan, Israel, Australia, Canada, New, North Sinai
A wall is going up in the desert of Egypt near the border of the war-torn Gaza Strip, but no one is talking much about it. Image Construction of a wall along the Egyptian border with Rafah is seen in this satellite imagery. Credit... Maxar TechnologiesThe satellite imagery clearly shows newly graded land south of the Rafah border crossing. And many Palestinians suspect that Israel might not allow people who leave Gaza to come back when the war is over. One Gazan official in Rafah, Ahmed al-Soufi, estimated that there were over 100,000 displaced Palestinians in encampments pressed against the border.
Persons: Gazans, Ahmed al, Martin Griffiths, , Hisham el, Gen Mohamed Shousha, Ahmed Ezzat, Nick Cumming, Bruce, Adam Rasgon Organizations: The New York Times, Maxar, The Times, Egyptian Army, United Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Israel, North Sinai —, North Sinai, Maj, Geneva, Jerusalem
As the Gaza war rages, with civilian deaths soaring, few Arab leaders have publicly voiced their visions for the future of the battered enclave, fearing they will be accused of endorsing Israel’s actions. But one influential Palestinian exile, in an interview with The New York Times, has provided public insight into the types of postwar plans that Arab leaders are privately discussing. Mohammed Dahlan, an adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, outlined one under which Israel and Hamas would hand power to a new and independent Palestinian leader who could rebuild Gaza under the protection of an Arab peacekeeping force. While such plans face steep challenges, the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Emirates are open to supporting processes that are part of efforts leading to a Palestinian state, said Mr. Dahlan, who also has close ties to Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Persons: Mohammed Dahlan, Dahlan, Abdel Fattah el Organizations: The New York Times, United Arab, Emirates Locations: Gaza, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Arab, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Palestinian
The fortification by the border with Gaza is a “precautionary” measure ahead of an expected Israeli ground operation in Rafah, Egyptian security officials told CNN. Now, Egypt is sounding alarms again as Israel pushes more than a million Palestinians toward its territory and prepares for a military operation in Rafah. The treaty also limited the number of troops stationed on the border between Egypt and Gaza, which at the time was controlled by Israel. A satellite image from Maxar Technologies shows Rafah, Gaza, on February 3. After Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, it agreed with Egypt on a mechanism to secure the area with only Egyptian border patrol forces on the Egyptian side of the border.
Persons: Israel’s, Gazans, Kerem, Karm, Said Khatib, Bezalel Smotrich, , Emad Gad, , Winter, Abdel Fattah el, Sisi, Abed Zagout, Itamar Ben Gvir, Smotrich, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ahmed Abu Zeid, ” Abu Zeid, Ibraheem Abu Mustafa, Israel, it’s, Gad, ” Gad Organizations: CNN, Getty, Twitter, Israel, Associated Press, The New York Times, Ahram, Maxar Technologies, Maxar, Ahram Center for Political, Strategic Studies, Institute for National Security Studies, Department of, Islamic, Tel Aviv University, National, Finance, Foreign, Foreign Ministry, Alghad, Reuters, Egyptian, demilitarize, Al, News, Ahram Center Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, North Sinai, Israel, Karm Abu Salem, AFP, Cairo, Western, United States, Washington, Tel Aviv, Anadolu, Sinai, Israeli, Al
The pressure on Egypt is building. More than half of Gaza’s population is squeezed into miserable tent cities in Rafah, a small city along Egypt’s border, left with nowhere else to go by Israel’s military campaign. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has threatened to overrun the area, and on Friday, he directed his forces to plan the evacuation of civilians from Rafah to clear the way for a new offensive against Hamas. But it is not clear where those people could go. Israel’s next steps in the war could force such a breaking point.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s Organizations: Hamas Locations: Egypt, Rafah, Egypt’s, Israel, Gaza
In a statement announcing the orders on Friday, Mr. Netanyahu’s office did not give any details of when the evacuations might be carried out, when the Israeli military might enter the city or where people might go. Mr. Netanyahu’s office said it would be impossible to realize Israel’s goal of smashing Hamas’s rule in Gaza without destroying what it said were the group’s four battalions in Rafah, on Egypt’s border. The military’s “combined plan” would have to both “evacuate the civilian population and topple the battalions,” the statement said. “Any forceful action in Rafah would require the evacuation of the civilian population from combat zones,” it said. After Mr. Netanyahu said this week that he had ordered troops to prepare to enter Rafah, aid agencies, the United Nations and U.S. officials said the prospect of an incursion there was particularly alarming.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden, , Netanyahu Organizations: United Nations Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Egypt’s
Airstrikes hit a southern Gaza border city crowded with civilians on Thursday, a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced a cease-fire proposal by Hamas and signaled that the Israeli military was preparing to move into the area. “There is no place for the people to run to,” said Fathi Abu Snema, a 45-year-old father of five who has been living in a United Nations-run school in Rafah for nearly four months. “Everyone from all other parts of Gaza ended up in Rafah. Mr. Netanyahu said that Hamas’s demands were “ludicrous” and that accepting them would only invite further attacks on Israel. “We have yet to see any evidence of serious planning for such an operation,” he said.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, , Fathi Abu Snema, Netanyahu, “ Hamas’s, Vedant Patel Organizations: United Nations, State Department Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Israel, Egypt’s, Washington,
Palestinians inspect a damaged house after an Israeli air strike on Rafah in southern Gaza on January 27. The Israel Defense Forces claimed UNRWA facilities were used for "terrorist purposes" in a statement on Saturday. Situation deteriorating at Khan Younis hospitals: Nasser Hospital, the main medical center in the southern Gaza city, is running out of its supply of blood, anesthesia and other medications, the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health said Saturday. Where hostage talks stand: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu challenged Qatar on Saturday, saying, "They position themselves as intermediaries. The Houthis claim the attacks are in solidarity with the Palestinian people as a result of the war in Gaza — an argument the US has repeatedly rejected.
Persons: Abed Rahim Khatib, Israel —, Younis, Benjamin Netanyahu, I’m, Bill Burns Organizations: Reuters CNN, Israel Defense Forces, United, Palestine Red Crescent Society, IDF, CNN, UN, United Nations Relief, Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Nasser Hospital, of Health, Hamas, Hospital, Qatar, CIA, Command, Houthi Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Israel, United Nations, Palestine, Hamas, Qatar, Marshall, Gulf, Aden, Iran
CNN —Efforts to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza and broker a prolonged pause in fighting are at an important juncture as President Joe Biden deploys his point person on hostage talks to Europe for multiparty talks on the contours of a possible agreement. He said on Friday, Biden had spoken to Egypt’s President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi as well as Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to discuss ongoing hostage talks. “We continue to do everything we can to facilitate another hostage deal just like we did back in November,” Kirby said. Each stage would come with a pause in fighting and the delivery of aid to the North and South of Gaza. The White House on Thursday reiterated its gratitude for Qatar — which has acted as a key mediator in hostage talks — in response to the leaked recording.
Persons: Joe Biden, Bill Burns, David Barnea, Abbas Kamel, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Burns, Barnea, John Kirby, , ” Kirby, Biden, Abdel Fatah al, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Al Thani, Kirby, Brett McGurk, , Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, Netanyahu, Netanyahu’s, Betsy Klein, Katie Bo Lillis Organizations: CNN, CIA, White House, Qatari, White, National Security, Hamas, Biden, Qatar Locations: Gaza, Europe, Israel, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al, France, Washington, Qatar, Egypt, South, Palestinian, Gulf
U.S. officials said Israel’s apparent willingness to agree to a cessation of hostilities in return for the release of more hostages being held in Gaza has created a new opening for negotiations. Any new deal would likely include phased releases of hostages, though the White House is hoping that a more ambitious one, possibly leading to the release of all of the remaining hostages, might be possible. The talks were mediated by Qatar, which was negotiating with Hamas, as well as by Egypt. At least some of the officials last met in Warsaw in December, but those discussions stalled over Hamas’s insistence that the remaining hostages be released in exchange for a permanent cease-fire and larger prisoner releases. Israel rejected any permanent cease-fire and was pushing for a shorter pause in fighting.
Persons: William J, Burns, David Barnea, Barnea, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim, Abbas Kamel, Israel Organizations: Qatari, Hamas Locations: Europe, United States, Gaza, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Thani, Warsaw
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. trade body sounded an alarm Thursday that global trade is being disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea, the war in Ukraine, and low water levels in the Panama Canal. Since November, the Iranian-backed Houthis have launched at least 34 attacks on shipping through the waterways leading to the Suez Canal. Total transits through the Panama Canal in December were 36% lower than a year ago, and 62% lower than two years ago, Hoffmann said. Hoffmann said ships transporting liquified natural gas have stopped transiting the Suez Canal altogether because of fears of an attack. “Here you see the global impact of the crisis, as ships are seeking alternative routes, avoiding the Suez and the Panama Canal,” Hoffmann said.
Persons: Jan Hoffmann, Yemen’s Houthi, Hoffmann, Yemen’s, ” Hoffmann Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, United Nations Conference, Trade, UNCTAD, Suez, U.N, Ships Locations: Red, Ukraine, Panama, Suez, Asia, Europe, Iranian, Saudi, Israel, United States, Britain, Geneva, Russia, East Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, Hope, Africa, Shanghai, U.S
BEIJING (AP) — China, the world’s biggest exporter, says it is deeply concerned about tensions in the Red Sea that have upended global trade by forcing many shippers to avoid the Suez Canal. Political Cartoons View All 253 Images“We are deeply concerned about the recent escalation of the Red Sea situation. The Red Sea is an important international trade route for goods and energy,” Wang said. Some of the world’s largest container shipping companies and oil giant BP have been sending vessels on longer journeys around Africa that bypass the Red Sea. In response to the growing impact on global trade, the United States and a host of other nations have created a new force to protect ships.
Persons: Wang Wenbin, ” Wang, Yemen’s, Israel —, Wang, Good Hope, , Organizations: BEIJING, Foreign, Kiel Institute, Washington, U.S, United Nations Security Locations: China, Suez, Iran, Red, Iranian, Asia, Europe, Sanaa, Saudi, Israel, Gaza, United States, Africa, Good, Drewry, Germany, U.S, Iraq, Syria, Red Sea, Saudi Arabia, East, Beijing, Yemen
CNN —Egypt reached the Africa Cup of Nations knockout stages thanks to a 2-2 draw against Cape Verde in a stunning finale to Group B, as Ghana threw away a 2-0 lead to move to the brink of an early tournament exit. Going into the final round of matches, Cape Verde had already secured top spot but Egypt, Ghana and Mozambique all had a chance of reaching the last 16. Their disappointment, however, would be short lived and they were quickly informed that Ghana had squandered its 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Mozambique in the 91st and 94th minute. Relief will certainly be the overriding emotion for an Egypt team that has struggled to make much of an impression at the tournament so far. Ghana blew a 2-0 lead in injury time to move to the brink of elimination from AFCON.
Persons: Cape Verde’s Gilson Benchimol Tavares, Egypt’s Trézéguet, Mostafa Mohamed, Bryan Silva Teixeira Jr, Mo Salah, Issouf Sanogo, , Ramy Abbas Issa, @RamyCol, Salah, Chris Hughton, hasn’t Organizations: CNN, Africa, Nations, Cape, Getty, Brighton, Nottingham Forest Locations: Egypt, Cape Verde, Ghana, Mozambique, AFP, England, Morocco
The Pharaohs will definitely qualify for the knockout rounds with a win in its final group game. When asked if he thought Salah would be fit enough to rejoin the national team in Ivory Coast, Klopp said: “I’m not a doctor. I would say if Egypt qualify for the final and he is fit before the final then probably yes. “I have won everything possible but not this one yet,” Salah told reporters, per Reuters. There is approximately 5,300km between Liverpool and Abidjan, where Egypt play Cape Verde on Monday, meaning the 31-year-old might clock up over 20,000km of flying in order to help his country win an eighth AFCON title.
Persons: CNN — Mohamed Salah, Salah, , Jurgen Klopp, Klopp, ” Salah, AFCON Organizations: CNN, Liverpool, of Nations, Ghana, Cape, Bournemouth, Premier League, Reuters Locations: Ivory, Cape Verde, Egypt, Liverpool, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Cameroon, Abidjan, Cape
CNN —A former National Security Council official has reached a plea deal on hate crime charges after going on racist, anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic rants against a food cart vendor in New York in November. Stuart Seldowitz, 64, pleaded not guilty in November to two counts of fourth-degree hate crime/stalking and one count of second-degree aggravated harassment, court records show. In another video, Seldowitz tells the vendor, “We’re going to put big signs here saying this guy believes in Hamas.”In another video, Seldowitz asks the man whether he’s familiar with Egypt’s General Intelligence Service, better known as the Mukhabarat. Mohamed Attia, of the Street Vendor Project, told CNN the vendor said he did not instigate the conversation with Seldowitz. His family’s landlord was charged in what police are calling a hate crime and has pleaded not guilty to charges including murder.
Persons: CNN —, Stuart Seldowitz, Seldowitz, , Afaf Nasher, We’re, “ Mukhabarat, ” Seldowitz, Barack Obama’s, hasn’t, Mohamed Attia Organizations: CNN, National Security Council, Manhattan, Attorney’s Office, Islamic Relations, CAIR’s, ” CNN, Egypt’s General Intelligence Service, National Security Council South, Directorate, Gotham Government Relations, New, CAIR Locations: New York, York, Egypt, New York City, Israel, Chicago, Vermont
Gaza City Khan Younis Gaza Strip RafahSee the Rapid Expansion of Tent Camps in Southern GazaRecent satellite imagery shows an influx of displaced Palestinians into Rafah, the Gaza Strip’s southernmost region, where about 1.25 million people are now living in squalid, cramped conditions. A satellite image from Nov. 10 showing a portion of western Rafah in the Gaza Strip. There has been an expansion to the area of visible tents, mostly limited to the areas around the schools and the logistics base. The number of tents and makeshift structures sharply increased across this area of Rafah after Israel’s repeated orders to evacuate large portions of central and southern Gaza in December. With a vast majority of Gaza’s population displaced, aid groups and the U.N. have been struggling to keep up with the staggering demand for help in Rafah and across the Gaza Strip.
Persons: Tal, Israel’s, , Juliette Touma, Ibraheem Abu Mustafa, Shaina, Ms, Low, Al Qarya, Deir al Balah, Khan Younis, Touma, al Balah Khan Younis Organizations: Camps, Labs, Hamas, Planet Labs, United Nations Relief, Works Agency, Norwegian Refugee Council, United Nations, Reuters, Humanitarian Affairs, . Locations: Gaza, Khan, Rafah, Southern Gaza, Rafah’s, Ibraheem, Egypt, Egypt’s, U.N, Deir, al, al Balah Khan Younis Rafah, Israel
CNN —The Israeli soldiers stand rifles in hand, arm over shoulder, speaking to the camera. “We must promote a solution to encourage the emigration of the residents of Gaza,” far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on January 1. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also holds a position in the Defense Ministry, says that Israel “will rule there. If Palestinians in Gaza are “post-Jihad, pro-Israel, and want to live that good life in that beautiful soil, there should be an opportunity for that,” he said. That color was adopted in 2004 and 2005 by the movement protesting Israel’s disengagement from Gaza.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, , Itamar Ben, Gvir, Bezalel Smotrich, Israel “, Antony Blinken, Dahlia Scheindlin, Itamar Ben Gvir, restoking, Netanyahu, ” Scheindlin, Diana Buttu, Netanyahu’s, , Ariel Sharon’s, Katif, Yishai Fleisher, ” Fleisher, we’ve, Fleisher, , Jordan, ” Israel, Gush Katif, Hanan Ben Ari serenaded, Ben Gvir, Gila, Mahmoud Abbas, ” Omer Bartov, Buttu, ” Netanyahu, ” Tzvi, Melech, Ben Gvir’s Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Palestinian Authority, Gaza . Social Media, , Likud, National, Defense Ministry, United, Haaretz, Israeli, National Security, Settler, West Bank, , Israel, Norwegian Refugee Council, United Nations, International Court of Justice, Israel Defense Forces, Gush, Social Media, Oregon State University, City University of New, Brown University, Smotrich’s, Ben Gvir’s Jewish Power Party Locations: Israel, Gaza, Hamas, Ramallah, Authority, , United States, Palestinian, Qatar, , Hebron, Turkey, South America, South Africa, The Hague, Jerusalem, Gush, Israeli, Nova Beach, City University of New York, Israel’s
Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife are seeking separate trials on bribery charges they each face in a New York court. Lawyers for Bob Menendez wrote that each spouse should face separate trials so that the senator does not provide information about marital communications during cross-examination that might be damaging to his wife's defense. Several days earlier, the senator's lawyers had asked that charges in the case be dismissed. They added to those requests Monday, calling charges against him a “distortion of the truth.”“Senator Menendez isn’t just ‘not guilty’ — he is innocent of these charges. Senator Menendez has never sold out his office or misused his authority or influence for personal financial gain,” they wrote.
Persons: Sen, Bob Menendez, Nadine, Nadine Menendez’s, , Menendez isn’t, , Menendez, Organizations: The New, The New Jersey Democrat, Senate Foreign Relations, Prosecutors Locations: New York, The, The New Jersey, Jersey, New Jersey
CNN —The border between Egypt and Gaza “must” be closed, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday – a move that would give Israel complete control over the Palestinian enclave’s access to the world. Egypt has previously warned Israel against military operations in the corridor, according to Egypt’s Ahram Online. Gaza borders Israel on two sides, and its Mediterranean coast and airspace are also under tight Israeli blockades. But aid groups say it is still far from enough and warn of a growing risk of famine for Gaza’s isolated population if Israeli restrictions on imports persist. In three months of siege, more than 23,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to health authorities in the Hamas-controlled enclave.
Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, We’ll, we’ll, ” Netanyahu, Israel’s “, , Israel, Netanyahu’s Organizations: CNN, Egypt’s Ahram, United Nations, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Israel, Rafah, United, Israel’s Kerem Shalom, United States
CNN —Israel’s military said it was resuming combat operations in Gaza on Friday morning after the temporary truce with Hamas that had paved the way for hostage releases broke down. The hard-negotiated temporary truce, which began last Friday, was extended by two days following the release of some captives held by Hamas. The truce brought temporary respite to the besieged enclave of Gaza, which had been relentlessly pounded by Israel’s military since the Hamas attack. As the truce expiration loomed, both Israel and Hamas indicated they were prepared for fighting to resume. Under the terms of the truce deal, Israel has to free three Palestinians for every Israeli hostage released.
Persons: CNN —, Benjamin Netanyahu, , ” Netanyahu, , Israel, Yoav Gallant, Al, ” Danny Danon, Organizations: CNN, of Interior, Hamas, UN, Palestinian Ministry of Health, West Bank, Israeli, Qatari, Information Service, Locations: Gaza, Israel, Egypt, , Israeli
Israel has welcomed the release of dozens of hostages in recent days and says it will maintain the truce if Hamas keeps freeing captives. Weeks of heavy aerial bombardment and a ground invasion have demolished vast swaths of northern Gaza and killed thousands of Palestinians. With information hard to come by, authorities have only given approximate counts of the number of hostages held in Gaza. Another 21 hostages — 19 Thais, one Filipino and one Russian-Israeli — have been released in separate negotiations since the truce began. Before the cease-fire, Hamas released four hostages, and the Israeli army rescued one.
Persons: Yehya Sinwar, Biden, Israel, ” Martin Indyk, Antony Blinken, Benjamin Netanyahu, , Israel's, , Omar al, Dr, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, ___ Magdy Organizations: , Health Ministry, Hamas, World Health Organization Locations: RAFAH, Gaza, Israel, Israeli, United States, U.S, Egypt, Qatar, Brussels, GAZA, Al, Aqsa, Cairo, Lidman, Jerusalem, israel
Thirty Palestinian women and minors were released from Israeli prisons on Tuesday as part of the agreement, according to an official list. It was the fifth exchange of hostages and prisoners since Friday. Since Friday, when a cease-fire deal covering hostages, Palestinian prisoners and aid for Gaza went into effect, Hamas has released more than 60 hostages seized in its Oct. 7 raid in Israel that set off the war. Egypt, Israel and the United States dispatched their top intelligence officials to Qatar to negotiate further exchanges. director, joined David Barnea, the head of the Mossad, Israel’s spy service, and Abbas Kamel, Egypt’s spy chief, for meetings with Qatari officials, including the prime minister.
Persons: Israel, William J, Burns, David Barnea, Abbas Kamel, Egypt’s Organizations: Hamas, United Locations: Gaza, United States, Israel, Egypt, Qatar
CNN —A truce between Israel and Hamas is believed to have come into effect at 7 a.m. local time (12 a.m. ET) on Friday, with civilian hostages held captive by militants expected to be released in the coming hours as part of a breakthrough diplomatic deal following an uneasy day-long delay. An initial group of 13 women and children held in Gaza are expected to be freed later Friday, mediators in Qatar said the previous day. Thirty-nine Palestinian prisoners would also be released by Israel Friday as part of the deal, according to an Israeli official. Most of the prisoners concerned are male teenagers, along with some women, according to an Israeli government list of those who could be released.
Persons: Diaa Rashwan, Israel, , Benjamin Netanyahu, Organizations: CNN, Israel, Egypt’s, Service, Hamas Locations: Israel, Gaza, Sderot, Qatar
RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas on Friday released 24 hostages who had been held captive in Gaza for weeks, and Israel freed 39 Palestinians from prison in the first stage of a swap under a four-day cease-fire deal. The freed hostages included 13 Israelis, 10 people from Thailand and one from the Philippines, according to Qatar. The freed Israeli hostages included eight women — six of them in their 70s and 80s — and three children. FIRST HOSTAGES FREEDAfter nightfall Friday, a line of ambulances emerged from Gaza through the Rafah Crossing in Egypt, carrying the freed hostages, according to live footage on Egypt’s state-run Al-Qahera TV. Israel said the four-day truce can be extended an extra day for every additional 10 hostages freed.
Persons: Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, , ” Shelli Shem Tov, Omer Shem Tov, I’m, Omer, Ofer, , Sofian Abu Amer, Majed al, Ansari, Yoav Gallant, Netanyahu, ___ Federman, Jeffery, Bassem Mroue, Julia Frankel Organizations: West Bank, Israel’s, Foreign Ministry, Qatar, Israeli’s, . Police, Palestinian Prisoners ’ Club, FIRE, Associated Press, Hezbollah, Israeli, Gaza Health Ministry, Women Locations: RAFAH, Gaza, Thailand, Philippines, Qatar, Israel, Rafah, Egypt, Egyptian, Tel Aviv, Thai, U.N, Northern Gaza, Gaza City, Lebanon, United States, Jerusalem, Cairo, Beirut, israel
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