As a truce took hold on Sunday in Gaza, potentially ending the longest and deadliest war in a century of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, two men used the same metaphor to describe how they felt. “The weight on my chest has lifted,” said Ziad Obeid, a Gazan civil servant displaced several times during the war. “We have…
President Biden and his aides came into office with deep experience in trans-Atlantic affairs. But over four years, they focused too on the Pacific, where China strains to be the dominant player. Their main effort: building up alliances to counter China. President-elect Donald J. Trump has already signaled a different approach to China. He invited…
Putting aside that argument, there are certainly some diplomatic opportunities Mr. Trump can seize, though history and ominous recent warnings suggest that he may soften up his adversaries and his allies with threats of military action if he doesn’t get what he wants. (See: Iran, Greenland, Panama.) Here is a scorecard to keep handy in…
The cease-fire agreement reached between Israel and Hamas this week sets in motion the release of dozens of hostages that Hamas and its allies have been holding in Gaza since the start of the war more than a year ago. About 100 hostages, living and dead, are thought to be held captive in Gaza. Most…
Israel is due to release more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners over the course of the 42-day initial cease-fire, according to the terms of the agreement, beginning with at least 90 on Sunday in exchange for three Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. Israelis say that many of the prisoners are terrorists and murderers. Many…
When Hamas militants led a deadly cross-border raid on Oct. 7, 2023, they triggered a war with Israel that has devastated Gaza. They also set off shock waves that have reshaped the Middle East in unexpected ways. Powerful alliances were upended. Long-established “red lines” were crossed. A decades-old dictatorship at the heart of the region…
The Israeli authorities are making preparations to welcome home dozens of hostages held incommunicado by Hamas for over a year in Gaza, without knowing whether they will return starved, traumatized or dead. Thirty-three hostages are supposed to be freed in the first phase of the Gaza cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas, in the first…
The Israeli authorities are making preparations to welcome home dozens of hostages held incommunicado by Hamas for over a year in Gaza, without knowing whether they will return starved, traumatized or dead. Thirty-three hostages are supposed to be freed in the first phase of the Gaza cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas, in the first…
President Biden said Thursday that in the days after the war in Gaza began, he pushed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to prevent civilian deaths and to accommodate Palestinians’ concerns, while maintaining the United States’ firm support for Israel. Mr. Biden spoke with the MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell in his last television interview while…
Negotiators raced on Thursday to resolve last-minute disputes in a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas that would free hostages and halt the violence that has devastated Gaza over the past 15 months. The disputes helped delay by at least one day a critical Israeli vote to approve the deal. Even though negotiators for Israel…