Hamas released three more hostages on Saturday as part of its cease-fire deal with Israel, in a quick process that was a stark contrast to a chaotic handover earlier this week. The hostage release is part of a 42-day cease-fire deal that went into effect last month, pausing the fighting between Israel and Hamas. Hamas…
Washington — Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked a Republican-led measure that would sanction the International Criminal Court, arguing that the bill as written would backfire on U.S. allies and companies. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to vote with Republicans to advance the legislation. In a 54 to 45 vote, the bill…
President Trump’s Middle East envoy is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Tuesday, according to a spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu. The visit by the envoy, Steven Witkoff, was set to take place as Israeli and Hamas officials prepared for a new round of negotiations aimed at cementing the current cease-fire in…
The cease-fires in Gaza and Lebanon will most likely hold for now, despite being tested to their limits over the weekend, because all sides want to avoid full-scale fighting at least for a few weeks, analysts said. In southern Lebanon, Israeli troops remained in position past the deadline on Sunday for their withdrawal, amid Israeli…
Israeli troops were preventing Palestinians from returning to their homes in the north of the Gaza Strip on Sunday after Israel accused Hamas of violating the terms of the cease-fire agreement. Under the terms of the initial phase of the deal agreed earlier this month, Israel had been expected to withdraw some of its forces…
In the days since a cease-fire agreement took hold in the Gaza Strip, Israel has turned its attention to a Palestinian city about 75 miles northeast of the enclave — one with a long history of resistance and militant activity. On Wednesday, as some of its troops withdrew from Gaza, the Israeli military said it…
Hours after the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas took effect, a senior Hamas official said that the militant group was ready to start a dialogue with the United States, making a rare overture to a country that Hamas has long excoriated for supporting Israel. The comments made by the official, Mousa Abu Marzouk, who is…
At the end of a war in Gaza in 2021, Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, was photographed sitting in an armchair in his ruined home, a symbol of continuing resistance to Israel. Mr. Sinwar was killed in this latest Gaza war, in which Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, vowed to dismantle and…
Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on an initial six-week truce in part by putting off their most intractable disputes to a nebulous second phase — which neither side is sure they will reach. Under the agreement, 16 days into the initial cease-fire, Israeli and Hamas officials are expected to begin negotiating next steps: an…
The mediating country Qatar on Saturday announced a time for the cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas to take effect the next day, setting off final preparations for a truce that much of the world hopes will end 15 months of destruction in Gaza. The deal should go into effect at 8:30 a.m. local time…