Web Desk/AFP

NEW YORK: The United Nations on Monday urged that it&nbsp;was time to fully implement the Gaza ceasefire deal after Israel recovered the last hostage in the territory. &quot;The full implementation of the ceasefire arrangements in Gaza is absolutely critical,&quot; said Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Palestinian fighters took 251 hostages to Gaza that day, and the process of returning them has dragged on over the course of the ensuing war in a series of ceasefire and prisoner-swap deals as well as efforts to rescue them militarily. The most recent set of hostage handovers was part of the US-backed Gaza ceasefire deal that took effect on October 10, aiming to halt more than two years of fighting that has devastated the Palestinian territory. The return of Gvili&#39;s remains paves the way for a limited reopening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a key entry point for aid into Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had signaled pedestrian crossings would resume at Rafah, subject to Israeli inspections, once every hostage had been recovered. Hamas said it provided information on the location of Gvili&#39;s body, and spokesman Hazem Qassem said Monday that his recovery &quot;confirms Hamas&#39;s commitment to all the requirements of the ceasefire agreement.&quot; The first phase of the US-backed deal stipulated the return of every hostage, and Gvili&#39;s family had opposed moving on to the second phase before they had received his remains. Reopening Rafah forms part of the truce framework announced by US President Donald Trump. Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel was now &quot;at the doorstep of the next phase&quot; of the deal, which involves &quot;disarming Hamas and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip.&quot; While the ceasefire plan demands the group&#39;s disarmament in the second phase, Hamas has so far refused to commit. Central Gaza&#39;s Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital said on Monday it had received nine living Palestinian detainees released by Israel after Gvili&#39;s recovery. Hamas&#39;s 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. Israel&#39;s retaliation has left at least 71,660 people dead in Gaza, according to the territory&#39;s health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.

Middle East

Central Gaza's Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital says it received nine living Palestinian hostages released by Israel after Gvili's recovery; UN secretary-general's spokesperson says ceasefire arrangements in Gaza are "absolutely critical."

UN urges Gaza truce implementation after final hostage return 

GAZA CITY: An Israeli air strike killed an AFP freelancer and two other journalists in Gaza on Wednesday, the territory&#39;s civil defense agency said, while the military said it struck &quot;suspects&quot; operating a drone. Since Oct. 10, a fragile US-sponsored ceasefire in Gaza has largely halted the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas, but both sides have alleged frequent violations. In a statement, the civil defense said three journalists were killed in an Israeli air strike in the Al-Zahra area southwest of Gaza City, naming the dead as Mohammed Salah Qashta, Abdul Raouf Shaat, and Anas Ghneim. Shaat had contributed regularly to AFP as a photo and video journalist, but at the time of the strike, he was not on assignment for the agency. In a statement, AFP said it was mourning the loss of Shaat, who would be remembered as a &quot;kind-hearted colleague, with a gentle sense of humor, and as a deeply committed journalist.&quot; &quot;AFP demands a full and transparent investigation into his death,&quot; it said. &quot;Far too many local journalists have been killed in Gaza over the past two years while foreign journalists remain unable to enter the territory freely,&quot; the agency added. In a statement, the Israeli military said troops had &quot;identified several suspects who operated a drone affiliated with Hamas in the central Gaza Strip.&quot; The military did not elaborate on what it meant by a &quot;drone affiliated with Hamas.&quot; &quot;Due to the threat that the drone posed to the troops, the (Israeli military) precisely struck the suspects who activated the drone,&quot; it said, adding that the details were under review. Vehicle &#39;criminally targeted&#39;&nbsp;According to an eyewitness, the journalists were using a drone to take images of aid distribution by the Egyptian Relief Committee in the Gaza Strip when a strike targeted a vehicle accompanying them. The Egyptian aid group confirmed one of its vehicles was targeted by Israel in a strike that killed three people. &quot;A vehicle belonging to the Egyptian Committee was targeted during a humanitarian mission, resulting in the martyrdom of three individuals,&quot; said Mohammed Mansour, a spokesman for the Egyptian Relief Committee in the Gaza Strip, adding that all vehicles belonging to the group &quot;bear the committee&#39;s logo&quot;. &quot;The Israeli army criminally targeted this vehicle&quot; when the individuals were filming the Netzarim camp, Mansour said. AFP footage showed the vehicle charred, with mangled remains lying in an open area. Palestinian movement Hamas called the strike &quot;a dangerous escalation of the flagrant violations of the ceasefire agreement.&quot; The Palestinian Journalists&#39; Syndicate condemned it as part of a &quot;systematic and deliberate policy pursued by the Israeli occupation to intentionally target Palestinian journalists&quot;. Israeli forces have killed at least 466 Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect, according to the territory&#39;s health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority. The Israeli military said militants have killed three of its soldiers during the same period. Gaza&#39;s health ministry said another eight Palestinians were also killed in Israeli attacks in the territory on Wednesday. Journalists under fire&nbsp;Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) expressed &quot;deep anger&quot; at the strike that killed Shaat and his colleagues, while the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was &quot;appalled.&quot; &quot;This isolated strike on journalists who were identifiable by their reporting equipment could indicate targeting and constitute a war crime,&quot; Martin Roux, head of RSF&#39;s crisis desk, was quoted as saying in a statement. Israel&#39;s advanced surveillance and targeting technology renders &quot;any claims of misidentification implausible,&quot; Sara Qudah, the CPJ&#39;s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, was quoted in an X post as saying. RSF said that Israeli forces killed at least 29 Palestinian journalists in Gaza between December 2024 and December 2025. The deadliest single attack was a so-called &quot;double-tap&quot; strike on a hospital in south Gaza on Aug. 25, which killed five journalists, including two contributors to international news agencies Reuters and the Associated Press. Since Hamas&#39;s attack on Israel in October 2023 sparked the war in Gaza, nearly 220 journalists have been killed by Israel, making the Palestinian territory by far the deadliest place for journalists, RSF data says. The Israeli military claims that several journalists it targeted in Gaza had been &quot;terrorists&quot; affiliated with Palestinian militant groups. Last week, US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff announced the start of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-says-gaza-truce-plan-entering-phase-two-as-governance-body-formed" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">phase two</a>&nbsp;of the Gaza ceasefire. The strike on Wednesday came hours after the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced he had <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/israels-netanyahu-accepts-trump-invitation-to-join-board-of-peace-statement" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">accepted</a> an invitation to join US President Donald Trump&#39;s &quot;Board of Peace&quot; aimed at resolving conflicts.

Since Hamas's attack on Israel in October 2023 sparked the war in Gaza, nearly 220 journalists have been killed by Israel, making the Palestinian territory by far the deadliest place for journalists; Israeli military claims that several journalists it targeted in Gaza had been 'terrorists' affiliated with Palestinian groups.

Israeli strike kills three Gaza journalists including AFP freelancer

JERUSALEM: Israel is determined to disarm Palestinian fighter group Hamas, the country&#39;s military chief said on Wednesday, describing 2026 as a &quot;decisive year&quot; for Israel&#39;s security. Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir visited troops in Gaza, just days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised the issue of Hamas disarmament in talks with US President Donald Trump. &quot;The year 2026 will be a decisive year in shaping the security reality of the state of Israel. Our determination to disarm Hamas of its weapons is absolute,&quot; Zamir told troops in Gaza. &quot;We will not allow the Hamas terrorist organization to rebuild its capabilities and threaten us,&quot; he added. Trump and Netanyahu presented a united front on Monday after the two discussed several issues as part of crucial talks on moving to the next stage of the fragile Gaza truce plan, including the disarmament of Hamas. &quot;If they don&#39;t disarm as they agreed to do, then there will be hell to pay for them,&quot; Trump told reporters after the two leaders met. &quot;They have to disarm in a fairly short period of time.&quot; Hamas has repeatedly said it would not surrender its weapons. Since Oct. 10, a truce in Gaza has largely halted the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas, but some White House officials fear both are slow-walking the second stage of the ceasefire. Under the second stage, Israel is supposed to gradually withdraw from its positions in Gaza, while Hamas is supposed to lay down its weapons. An interim authority is meant to govern the Palestinian territory, and an international stabilization force is to be deployed. Both sides, however, have alleged frequent ceasefire violations.

Under the second stage of the ceasefire plan, Israel is to gradually withdraw from its positions in Gaza, while Hamas is to lay down its weapons; an interim authority is meant to govern the Palestinian territory, and an international stabilization force is to be deployed.

Israel's determination to disarm Hamas is 'absolute': Military chief

WASHINGTON: The United States, Israel, and Qatar held a trilateral meeting in New York on Sunday, a senior White House official told AFP, months after Israeli jets conducted an airstrike in Doha, unsuccessfully targeting Hamas leadership. The White House official confirmed that the meeting had taken place but did not provide any further details. Two sources told US news outlet Axios it was &quot;the highest-level meeting between the countries since the deal to end the war in Gaza, for which Qatar served as a key mediator.&quot; Axios also reported White House envoy Steve Witkoff hosted the meeting, with Mossad spy chief David Barnea representing Israel and an unnamed senior Qatari official in attendance. Qatar, along with Egypt and the United States, helped broker a comprehensive ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which remains delicate as both Israel and Hamas accuse each other of breaching its terms. On Saturday, Qatar and Egypt both called for the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the deployment of an international stabilization force to fully implement the fragile agreement to end the conflict in Gaza. Speaking at a diplomatic conference in Doha, Qatari premier Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said &quot;a ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is full withdrawal of the Israeli forces (and) there is stability back in Gaza.&quot; Axios reported that the main focus of Sunday&#39;s meeting was largely &quot;on the implementation of the Gaza peace agreement.&quot; The Israeli strike on Doha on September 9 unsuccessfully targeted top Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayra and others in the Palestinian group. The strike instead killed six people and sparked a wave of criticism, including a rebuke from US President Donald Trump. Axios said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later called Al Thani from the White House &quot;at Trump&#39;s urging, to apologize for the strike.&quot;

Americas

Two sources say it was "the highest-level meeting between the countries since the deal to end the war in Gaza, for which Qatar served as a key mediator."

Israel, Qatar and US hold trilateral meeting in New York: report

ISTANBUL: Gaza&#39;s future must be Palestinian-led and avoid any new system of tutelage, Turkey and six of its top Muslim allies said Monday after talks in Istanbul. Turkey, which played a central role in forging the now shaky three-week-old ceasefire, is pushing for Muslim nations to bring their influence to bear on the reconstruction of the embattled territory. &quot;Our principle is that Palestinians should govern the Palestinians and ensure their own security, the international community should support this in the best possible way -- diplomatically, institutionally and economically,&quot; Turkey&#39;s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said after the talks. &quot;Nobody wants to see a new system of tutelage emerge,&quot; he told a news conference. Brokered by US President Donald Trump, the October 10 ceasefire -- which halted two years of continuous bloodshed -- has been tested by fresh Israeli strikes and claims of Palestinian attacks on Israeli soldiers. The talks involved top diplomats from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Pakistan and Indonesia. All of them were called to a meeting with Trump in September on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly, just days before he unveiled his plan to end the Gaza war. &quot;We&#39;ve now reached an extremely critical stage: we do not want the genocide in Gaza to resume,&quot; Fidan added, saying all seven nations supported plans for the Palestinians to take control of Gaza&#39;s security and governance. Fidan, who held talks at the weekend with a Hamas delegation led by its chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya, said the Islamist movement was &quot;ready to hand Gaza to a committee of Palestinians&quot;. He also expressed hope that reconciliation efforts between Hamas and the rival West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, &quot;will bear fruit as soon as possible,&quot; saying inter-Palestinian unity would &quot;strengthen Palestine&#39;s representation in the international community&quot;. Earlier, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Hamas was &quot;determined to adhere to the (truce) agreement&quot; and urged Muslim states to play &quot;a leading role&quot; in Gaza&#39;s recovery. &quot;We believe the reconstruction plan prepared by the Arab League and the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation)should be implemented immediately,&quot; he said of the plan unveiled in March. &#39;Task force needs UN mandate&#39; Turkey has been instrumental in backing Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel sparked the war in Gaza. Fidan said it was crucial that the emerging International Stabilisation Force that will monitor the Gaza ceasefire under Trump&#39;s plan, have a &quot;mandate defined by a UN Security Council resolution and a framework for legitimacy&quot;. Washington is currently working with Arab and international partners to decide on the composition of the force, with Turkey hoping to play a role, despite fierce opposition from Israel. &quot;The countries we&#39;ve spoken with say they will decide whether to send troops based on ... the ISF&#39;s mandate and authority,&quot; Fidan said. &quot;First, a general consensus needs to be reached on a draft, then it needs to be approved by the members of the Security Council. &quot;And it needs to be free from vetoes by any of the permanent (UNSC) members,&quot; he said of a blocking move frequently used by key Israel ally Washington. Israel has long viewed Turkey&#39;s diplomatic overtures with suspicion over Ankara&#39;s close ties with Hamas and adamantly opposes it joining the task force that is meant to take over after Israeli troops withdraw from Gaza. A Turkish disaster relief team, sent to help efforts to recover the remains of those trapped under the rubble -- including Israeli hostages seized by Hamas -- has been stuck at the border because of Israel&#39;s refusal to let them in, according to Ankara.

"Our principle is that Palestinians should govern the Palestinians and ensure their own security, the international community should support this in the best possible way -- diplomatically, institutionally and economically," Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.

Turkey, Muslim allies say Palestinian self-rule key to Gaza future

WASHINGTON: US envoy Jared Kushner, when asked about the prospect of a Palestinian state, which most governments worldwide now recognize but Israel and the United States do not, said it was &ldquo;too early to tell.&rdquo; Israel should help the Palestinians &quot;thrive&quot; if it seeks regional integration after the Gaza war is over, said Kushner, who has been involved in mediation efforts for a ceasefire. &quot;The biggest message that we&#39;ve tried to convey to the Israeli leadership now is that now that the war is over, if you want to integrate Israel with the broader Middle East, you have to find a way to help the Palestinian people thrive and do better,&quot; Kushner told CBS News in an interview that aired on Sunday. The interview preceded fresh Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip. Kushner, who is also US President Donald Trump&#39;s son-in-law, helped broker landmark deals during his first term in office that saw several Arab governments normalize ties with Israel. &lsquo;Joint security and economic opportunity&rsquo;In the CBS interview, he said that the situation remained &quot;very difficult,&quot; but he was looking for &quot;joint security and economic opportunity&quot; to guarantee that Israelis and Palestinians &quot;can live peacefully side by side in a durable way.&quot; On Monday, Kushner returned to Israel alongside Trump&#39;s special envoy Steve Witkoff for a visit that is expected to see them meet with Israeli government officials. Referring to the situation in Gaza since the October 10 ceasefire began, Kushner said: &quot;Hamas right now is doing exactly what you would expect a terrorist organization to do, which is to try to reconstitute and take back their positions.&quot; But he argued that if &quot;a viable alternative&quot; emerges, &quot;Hamas will fail, and Gaza will not be a threat to Israel in the future.&quot;

Says, 'biggest message we've tried to convey to the Israeli leadership is … if you want to integrate Israel with the broader Middle East, you have to find a way to help the Palestinian people thrive.' 

 ‘Too early to tell,’ says US envoy Kushner about prospect of Palestinian state  

Reuters

RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Authority is ready to work with US President Donald Trump and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on their effort to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire and start rebuilding, a senior Palestinian official told Blair on Sunday. Trump&#39;s plan for ending the Gaza war holds out the prospect of the Palestinian Authority, based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and led by President Mahmoud Abbas, eventually taking control of Gaza, but only after it completes reforms. Abbas lost control of Gaza to Hamas in 2007. Trump&#39;s proposal says Hamas must end its rule of Gaza and foresees the territory being run by a Palestinian technocratic committee supervised by an international body chaired by him and including Blair. Hussein al-Sheikh, deputy head of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said he had met Blair to discuss the day after in Gaza and making Trump&#39;s plan for &quot;stopping the Gaza war and establishing lasting peace in the region a success&quot;. &quot;We have confirmed our readiness to work with President Trump, Mr. Blair and the partners to consolidate the ceasefire, the entry of aid, the release of hostages and prisoners, and then start with the recovery and reconstruction,&quot; Sheikh wrote on X. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected Gaza being run by the Palestinian Authority.

Palestinians collect aid supplies from trucks that entered Gaza, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip October 12, 2025. (Reuters)

Trump's plan for ending the Gaza war holds out the prospect of the Palestinian Authority, based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and led by President Mahmoud Abbas, eventually taking control of Gaza, but only after it completes reforms. 

Palestinian Authority ready to help Trump's Gaza effort succeed, says official

DOHA: A Hamas source close to the group&#39;s negotiating committee told AFP on Sunday that it will not participate in post-war Gaza governance, as world leaders prepare to converge on Egypt for a Gaza peace summit. The source&#39;s comments come days after an Israel-Hamas ceasefire came into effect, and as both sides discuss implementing US President Donald Trump&#39;s 20-point plan to end the war, which calls for Hamas&#39; disarmament and for the group not to be involved in running post-war Gaza. &quot;For Hamas, the governance of the Gaza Strip is a closed issue. Hamas will not participate at all in the transitional phase, which means it has relinquished control of the Strip, but it remains a fundamental part of the Palestinian fabric,&quot; the source told AFP, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. Unlike other more top-heavy militant organisations in the region, Hamas&#39; leadership has in the past been divided on key issues, including on the future administration of Gaza. But where there appears to be no division among top members is on the question of disarmament, which the group has long described as a red line. &quot;Hamas agrees to a long-term truce, and for its weapons not to be used at all during this period, except in the event of an Israeli attack on Gaza,&quot; the source said. Another Hamas official who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive topics had earlier told AFP that Hamas&#39; disarmament was &quot;out of the question&quot;. The first clause of Trump&#39;s 20-point plan calls for Gaza to become a &quot;deradicalized terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbors&quot;. The plan also states Hamas will not have a role in future governance of the Strip, and that its military infrastructure and weapons should be &quot;destroyed and not rebuilt&quot;. Under Trump&#39;s plan, a temporary technocratic and apolitical Palestinian committee would be charged with the day-to-day running of public services. The source close to the negotiators said they had asked for mediator Egypt to call a meeting before the end of next week to agree on the composition of this committee, adding that &quot;the names are almost ready&quot;. &quot;Hamas, along with the other factions, have submitted 40 names. There is absolutely no veto over them, and none of them belong to Hamas,&quot; he added.

Palestinian children walk past destroyed buildings in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP)

A Hamas source said the group will not govern post-war Gaza, supporting a technocratic committee instead, amid US-brokered ceasefire and peace plan talks.

Hamas to relinquish control of Gaza after war, says source close to negotiators

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said he believed the Israeli ceasefire that began in Gaza on Friday would hold as Israel and Hamas are &quot;tired&quot; of fighting. &quot;It&#39;ll hold. I think it&#39;ll hold. They&#39;re all tired of the fighting,&quot; Trump told reporters, confirming his plans to travel to Israel and mediator Egypt this weekend. Trump said he would meet a &quot;lot of leaders&quot; in Egypt on Monday to discuss the future of devastated Gaza, adding that the meeting would likely be in Cairo. He said he would also address the Israeli parliament when he visits the country earlier on the same day. Trump said he was confident that the Gaza ceasefire would lead to a wider Middle East peace. &quot;Now we have some little hot spots, but they&#39;re very small... They&#39;ll be very easy to put out. Those fires are going to be put out very quickly,&quot; he added.

US president says he will meet a "lot of leaders" in Egypt on Monday to discuss the future of devastated Gaza, adds meeting will likely be in Cairo.



Trump says he believes Gaza ceasefire will 'hold'

WASHINGTON: The United States is sending about 200 troops to Israel to help support and monitor the ceasefire deal in Gaza as part of a team that includes partner nations, nongovernmental organizations, and private-sector players, US officials said on Thursday. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details that were not authorized for release, said US Central Command is going to establish a &ldquo;civil-military coordination center&rdquo; in Israel that will help facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid as well as logistical and security assistance into the territory wracked by two years of war. The remarks provide some of the first details on how the ceasefire deal would be monitored and that the US military would have a role in that effort. After Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a Trump administration plan to halt the fighting, a litany of questions remains on the next steps, including Hamas disarmament, a withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and a future government in the territory. One of the officials said the new team will help monitor the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the transition to a civilian government in Gaza. The coordination center will be staffed by about 200 US service members who have expertise in transportation, planning, security, logistics and engineering, said the official, who noted that no American troops will be sent into Gaza. A second official said the troops would be drawn from US Central Command, which has troops stationed in the Middle East as well as other parts of the globe. That official added that the troops have already begun arriving and will continue to travel to the region over the weekend to start planning and efforts to establish the center. Two other senior US officials who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal deliberations publicly offered more details about forces from other countries and what US troops would be doing. Members of the armed forces of Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates are expected to be embedded with the team of 200 US troops, according to one of the officials. The American service members will integrate the multinational force and coordinate with Israeli defense forces, the official said. The exact location of where US troops will be positioned is something they will be working to determine on Friday, the other official said. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, highlighted Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Thursday, saying he had worked alongside special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump&rsquo;s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. &ldquo;Cooper &mdash; I hear he&rsquo;s been fantastic,&rdquo; Trump said. Cooper joined the US side of the talks in Egypt this week, according to one of the US officials, and he helped reassure the Arab countries at the negotiating table that the US would put a strong guarantee behind its commitments &mdash; a reassurance the Arab countries then passed along to Hamas. In a show of readiness, Cooper told them he could have a command post up and running in the next two and a half weeks. A breakthrough deal to pause the war in Gaza was reached on Wednesday after the United States and mediators in the region pressured both Israel and Hamas to end the fighting that has devastated the Gaza Strip, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, sparked other conflicts, and isolated Israel. That push sealed an agreement on a first phase that would free the remaining living Israeli hostages within days in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

Official says coordination center will be staffed by 200 US service members who have expertise in transportation, planning, security, logistics and engineering, notes no American troops will be sent into Gaza.



Articles tagged with "Gaza ceasefire"