Summary
That’s all from our live coverage of the Middle East for today. In case you missed anything, here’s a quick round-up of all the day’s developments.
Three Israeli and five Thai nationals who had been held in Gaza since the 7 October attack were released under the terms of the ceasefire deal
Pictures showed the Israeli hostages being greeted by their families after arriving back in Israel, while the Thai prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, said she was “elated” by the release of the five Thais
A total of 110 Palestinian prisoners were also freed by Israel in exchange and were met in Ramallah by cheering crowds
Zakaria Zubeidi, the former leader of a Palestinian militant group who was jailed for attacks that killed several Israelis, was among those released
The prisoner release was delayed after Israel objected to the way in which some of the hostages were led through large crowds before being handed to the Red Cross. It later said it had received assurance of the “safe release” of hostages in future from mediators
The Israeli military confirmed it had killed approximately 10 Palestinians in a strike on a “gathering of armed terrorists” in a village in the occupied West Bank
The death toll in Gaza since Israel launched its operation now stands at 47,460, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health
Israel’s ban on the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, came into force, with the agency told to vacate its headquarters in Jerusalem
Norway announced an additional $24m contribution to Unrwa, with its foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, saying: “Gaza is in ruins, and Unrwa’s help is more necessary than ever”
The European Union said its foreign ministers would hold separate talks with representatives of Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the coming weeks
Thanks for following our live coverage. You can find our latest write-up on an eventful day here:
Israel confirms release of 110 Palestinian prisoners
Israel’s Prison Service has confirmed the release of 110 prisoners under the terms of the ceasefire deal.
Two buses carrying prisoners arrived in Ramallah in the West Bank this afternoon and were welcomed by crowds of hundreds of people.
Don't let 'open door' for releases close, says family of freed hostage
The family of freed Israeli hostage Arbel Yehoud has said the “open door” for the release of those still being held in Gaza should not be allowed to close.
Arbel was one of three Israeli nationals released on Thursday as part of the ceasefire agreement. Her partner, Ariel Cunio, and his brother, David Cunio, are both among those believed to still be being held.
“We will not rest until all hostages are released,” Yehoud’s family said in a statement.
“We urge everyone not to let this open door close. Everyone must be brought home immediately so that we can heal as a society.”
The mother of one of the Thai nationals freed this afternoon spoke ahead of his release about her excitement at seeing him.
Khammee Lamnao said the Thai embassy in Israel had called her to tell her that her son, Surasak Rumnao, was among those set to be released.
“I cannot wait to see my son,” the 53-year-old was quoted as saying by the Associated Press. “I’ve been waiting for him.”
Rumnao had been working in the agricultural sector in Israel for 15 months when he was abducted from the town of Yesha, a few miles from the border of the southern end of the Gaza Strip.
Updated
The EU will hold separate talks with Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the coming weeks, the European Commission has said.
Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Saar, will meet his EU counterparts, as well as the bloc’s high representative for foreign affairs, Kaja Kallas, on the sidelines of its monthly Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on 24 February.
“We will discuss the full range of issues with Israel, including the war in Gaza, regional issues, global issues and bilateral EU-Israel relations,” spokesman Anouar El Anouni said.
At the next meeting, on 17 March, Kallas and the Palestinian prime minister, Mohammed Mustafa, will co-chair the “first ever EU-Palestinian high level dialogue”.
“This will be an opportunity to discuss the EU support for the Palestinians and the full range of regional and also bilateral issues,” El Anouni said.
Updated
German Chancellor has welcomed today’s release of hostages, two of whom were dual citizens of Germany Israel.
“The German-Israeli citizens Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Moses are free,” he wrote on X.
“We are relieved and rejoice with all the hostages who have been released.
“But the fact remains that all of the hostages must be released and all mortal remains of the deceased returned to the families.
Updated
As we’ve been reporting, three Israeli and five Thai hostages were released today after spending more than a year being held hostage in Gaza.
Pictures show them being welcomed and reuniting with family members after their arrival in Israel.
Updated
Released Palestinian prisoners arrive in West Bank
Buses carrying Palestinian prisoners being released by Israel as part of the ceasefire agreement have arrived in Ramallah in the West Bank, Reuters reports.
The Associated Press also reports that white buses carrying prisoners earlier left Ofer Prison, a facility run by Israel in the occupied West Bank.
Updated
Israeli military confirms 10 Palestinians killed in West Bank strike
Israel’s military confirmed on Thursday that it had killed 10 Palestinians in a strike on a village in the occupied West Bank the day before, saying it had targeted militants, reports Agence France- Presse (AFP).
During a joint “counter-terrorism” operation by the military and domestic security agency, an air force “aircraft struck a gathering of armed terrorists in the area of Tamun” late Wednesday, the military said in a statement.
“Approximately 10 terrorists were eliminated in the strike,” it said, adding two of the militants killed were involved in an attack that killed an Israeli soldier and injured three others in Tamun on 20 January. The army said the two had also been “involved in additional shooting and explosives attacks”.
On Wednesday night, the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah said an Israeli drone strike had killed at least 10 people, while the military said at the time that it had struck an “armed cell”.
As expected, the latest crisis in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, which had seen the announced delay in releasing Palestinians from Israeli jails, has turned out to be more performative than substantial.
With the exchange expected to be completed later today Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has put out this statement:
Pursuant to prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s demand, the mediators have conveyed a commitment, according to which the safe exit of our hostages who are due to be released in the next phases has been assured.
Israel insists that the lessons be learned and that strict care be taken in the next phases regarding the safe return of our hostages.”
At issue were the chaotic scenes during today’s release of Israelis, in turn stage-managed by Hamas and Islamic Jihad for their own audience.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Thursday that the death toll from the war with Israel had reached 47,460, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP). The ministry’s figures do not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Despite a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel that began on 19 January, the death toll published by Gaza’s ministry of health continues to rise every day as bodies discovered under the rubble are identified or people succumb to earlier injuries, reports AFP.
In the last 24 hours, 43 additional deaths have been recorded, according to the ministry, which reported 111,580 injured from the war.
Israel has regularly questioned the credibility of the ministry’s figures, but they are considered reliable by the United Nations.
A study published in early January in the medical journal, the Lancet, estimated that the death toll in the Gaza Strip due to hostilities during the first nine months of the conflict was about 40% higher than the figures recorded by the Gaza ministry of health.
AFP and the Guardian are unable to independently verify the conflict’s death toll.
Turkey’s spy agency aided release of Thai prisoners in Gaza - report
Turkey’s spy agency helped secure the release of five Thai prisoners held by Hamas on Thursday as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal with Israel, state media reported.
Thirty-one Thai nationals were among the dozens abducted when Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, with 23 released by the end of that year and two confirmed dead in May.
Turkey’s National Intelligence Organisation (MIT) negotiated with Hamas after instructions from president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and secured the release of five Thai hostages in Gaza on Thursday, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports, citing the Anadolu news agency reported.
In mid-January, Erdoğan said his country hoped for a “lasting peace” in Gaza after the announcement of a ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas.
The Turkish leader met Hamas leader Muhammad Ismail Darwish in Ankara on Wednesday, his office said. Turkish foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, and MIT director, Ibrahim Kalin, also attended that meeting.
The Thai foreign ministry said the five released on Thursday would be taken to hospital for medical treatment.
“Thailand calls for the release of all the remaining hostages including a Thai national soonest, so they can safely return to their homeland and to their beloved families,” the ministry added.
Earlier we reported on Israel’s ban on the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa (see 10.50am GMT). In his piece, Peter Beaumont wrote that Palestinian staff were not present at the headquarters building in Jerusalem today due to security concerns amid a planned “celebration” by Israeli rightwing groups outside the compound.
Pictures on the newswires show nationalist Israeli activists spray painting over the Unrwa sign and attaching Israeli flags to the closed gate at the front of the headquarters.
Israel says mediators assured future 'safe release' of Gaza captives
Israel said it has received assurances from international mediators for the “safe release” of Gaza hostages during future exchanges, after chaotic scenes during Thursday’s handover of seven captives, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP) .
“Following prime minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu’s request, the mediators have provided a commitment guaranteeing the safe release of our hostages who will be freed in the next phases,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, after the prime minister earlier ordered a delay in the release of Palestinian prisoners (see 1.28pm GMT).
Israel says it received assurance from mediators for the future ‘safe release’ of Gaza captives, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
More details soon …
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has said she is “elated” following the release of the five Thai nationals from Gaza earlier today.
“Elated to get confirmation from our Thai Ambassador in Israel who informed me on the phone just now that five of our Thai nationals were indeed released today from Gaza,” she said in a statement.
“The Thai Government, including everyone here in Thailand, have long been waiting for this very moment.”
She added that the kingdom “deeply appreciates” the work done by Qatar, Egypt, Iran, Turkey, and the United States to secure the hostages’ release, and thanked Israel for taking care of them.
The five people released have been named as Watchara Sriaoun, Pongsak Tanna, Sathian Suwannakham, Surasak Lamnau, and Bannawat Saethao.
The Thai foreign ministry said all five were being taken to hospital for medical treatment.
Palestinian prisoners to be released at 5pm local time, say reports
Israeli and Qatari media reports are suggesting that the Palestinians due to be released today as part of the hostage deal will be released at 5pm local time (3pm GMT).
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier ordered that the releases be delayed following chaotic scenes during the release of three Israelis from Gaza.
Updated
We have some more images now from the release of the hostages earlier today.
Gadi Moses, Arbel Yehoud, and some of the five Thai nationals are seen being led through a crowd before being handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.
Updated
What we know about Israel's decision to delay release of Palestinian prisoners
Our senior international reporter writes from Jerusalem
Israel’s decision to delay the release of Palestinians held in its prisons, who had been due to be exchanged for three Israelis held in Gaza, is the latest crisis to hit the fragile ceasefire deal. How serious it is, is another question.
The ostensible reason for the delay was the chaotic crowd scenes in two locations in Gaza, during the release of the three Israelis today, one held by Hamas and two by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
As in previous releases Hamas has gone out of its way to stage-manage the optics of the release, complete with a military uniform provided for female soldier Agam Berger, stages, banners, the setting – Khan Younis, close to home of the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and the ruined Jabalia refugee camp.
Inevitably the releases were accompanied by scores of armed men escorting the released Israelis to be handed over to the Red Cross for repatriation.
The messaging has not been lost on Israeli and international observers. Hamas and PIJ, despite their decimation during 15 months of war, are keen to show they still exist and are able to put on a show of force with Israeli citizens at the centre.
Politically it makes the promises of Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of a “total victory” against Hamas ring hollow.
All of which has led to this new – and probably temporary crisis – as, in the midst of the releases in Gaza, Netanyahu put out a statement condemning the scenes.
“I view with utmost severity the shocking scenes during the release of our hostages. This is additional proof of the inconceivable brutality of the Hamas terrorist organization.
“I demand that the mediators make certain that such terrible scenes do not recur, and guarantee the safety of our hostages. Whoever dares to harm our hostages will pay the price.”
A little later his office briefed media that the release of Palestinians under the deal would be delayed until the hostages safe release was “guaranteed.”
The reality is that this is a largely manufactured crisis in a deal where Israel has tried hard to control the optics, not least around the release of Palestinians whose families have been warned not to celebrate in public.
But with US president Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, saying that an American hostage is expected to be released later this week, following a meeting in which he reportedly told Netanyahu that Trump expected all phases of the complex agreement to be honoured, it seems unlikely that Netanyahu will risk torpedoing the deal.
The wide popularity of the ceasefire deal among Israelis, relieved to see their fellow citizens released home week after week, would also seem to militate against a serious crisis that would halt the process.
More likely is that this latest episode is simply an attempt on Netanyahu’s part to show that Israel not Hamas controls the narrative.
Updated
A spokesperson for Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said:
“The prime minister and the minister of defence have instructed to delay the release of the terrorists until the mediators guarantee the safe exit of the hostages in the next releases.”
The statement was issued while Netanyahu and Ddefence minister, Israel Katz, were meeting with the US envoy to the Middle East, the spokesperson added.
Updated
Norway says sending $24m to Unrwa after Israel ban
The Norwegian government said on Thursday that it would contribute $24m to the UN agency that helps takes care of Palestinian refugees, the same day that Israel banned the group from operating on Israeli territory.
“Gaza is in ruins, and Unrwa’s help is more necessary than ever,” Norwegian foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, said in a statement, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
He said:
It is extremely dramatic for Palestine that Israeli laws come into force that in practice can prevent Unrwa from working.”
Israel halts release of Palestinian prisoners - report
The Times of Israel is reporting that Israel has halted the release of Palestinian security prisoners set to be freed in a protest against the scenes of chaos surrounding the release of Arbel Yehoud, Gadi Moses, and five Thai nationals.
The report says the prisoners were on the buses ready to be released when they ordered off.
Seven hostages released in Gaza on Thursday are back on Israeli soil where the two Israelis among them will be reunited with their families, the Israeli military said.
“A short while ago, accompanied by IDF (army) and ISA (security agency) forces, the seven returning hostages crossed the border into Israeli territory,” the military said, adding that the two Israeli hostages will be reunited with their families and the five Thai hostages will be met by Thai officials.
Israel publishes names of five freed Thai hostages
Israel issued the names of five Thai hostages freed by Palestinian militants on Thursday in Gaza as part of an ongoing ceasefire deal with Israel, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The Thai nationals are: Watchara Sriaoun, Pongsak Tanna, Sathian Suwannakham, Surasak Lamnau, and Bannawat Saethao, according to the Israeli prime minister’s office.
The family of a Thai farm worker held for over a year in Gaza wept with relief on Thursday as he was freed in a hostage-prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Five Thais were freed along with three Israelis held by Hamas as part of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the Gaza war. When Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, 31 Thais were abducted, with 23 released by the end of that year and two confirmed dead in May.
“It is confirmed everyone, my son did not die. Thank you God,” Wiwwaeo Sriaoun said as she heard the confirmation that her son Watchara Sriaoun was among those freed.
“I will hug him when I see him. I want to see if his health is OK, I am worried about his health,” she added between sobs. “Thank you, thank you God he did not died. We trust in God.”
About 10 family members had gathered to support Wiwwaeo as she waiting for news at the modest house on the family rubber farm in the north-east Udon Thani region.
Watchara was among the six Thai hostages still held in Gaza, but when the detainee exchange was announced on Wednesday there was no detail on which of the six Thais would be freed.
Hailing from the poor, rural Udon Thani, Watchara moved to Israel three years ago to work as a farmer for better wages.
Before her son’s release was confirmed, Wiwwaeo spent the day watching news channels on a tablet computer hoping for good news.
“Come, come home back to your father, mother and daughter,” she said as she watched.
Wiwwaeo told AFP:
My friend called around 10 pm and said the ambassador told her five Thais will be released, and my friend said my son could be one. I could not sleep from then until now. I was up until 3am and my husband and I went out for rubber tapping and since then I have been monitoring the news.”
Updated
Eight people released by Hamas as part of ceasefire deal
Here is a summary of today’s hostage-prisoner exchange as part of the Gaza ceasefire:
Hamas-led militants released eight hostages on Thursday – three Israelis (Agam Berger, Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Moses) and five Thai nationals. Female Israeli soldier Agam Berger, was freed in northern Gaza first. Hours later, a chaotic scene unfolded as thousands of people pressed around a handover site in the southern Gaza City of Khan Younis, in front of the destroyed home of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to witness the seven other hostages being handed over.
Israel is expected to release 110 Palestinian prisoners on Thursday. Of the people expected to be released from prisons in Israel, 30 are serving life sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks against Israelis. Zakaria Zubeidi, a former leader of a Palestinian militant group jailed for attacks that killed several Israelis is reported to be one of the prisoners to be released today.
Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, criticised what he described as “shocking scenes” during the handover. “I view with great severity the shocking scenes during the release of our hostages. This is yet another proof of the unimaginable cruelty of the Hamas terrorist organization,” Netanyahu said in a statement.
US president Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, visited Hostage Square in Tel Aviv as the crowd waited for confirmation that Gadi Moses had been handed to the Red Cross. Witkoff went for a meeting in a public library beyond, where the families of hostages have a room they use for meetings – but there is no confirmation he met any of them. He had earlier met the four female soldiers freed on Saturday.
Updated
Israel army says seven freed hostages in its custody
Israel’s army have confirmed that the seven freed hostages are now in its custody.
“The seven returning hostages are currently being accompanied by... special forces and ISA (Israel Security Agency) forces on their return to Israeli territory, where they will undergo an initial medical assessment,” the military said, referring to two Israeli hostages and five Thais who were held in Gaza.
Updated
Israel’s Netanyahu criticises 'shocking scenes' during hostage release
Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has criticised what he described as “shocking scenes” during the handover of seven hostages on Thursday, including two Israelis, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
“I view with great severity the shocking scenes during the release of our hostages. This is yet another proof of the unimaginable cruelty of the Hamas terrorist organization,” Netanyahu said in a statement, after television images showed gunmen struggling to control large crowds who had gathered to witness the handover.
“I demand that the mediators ensure such horrific scenes do not recur and guarantee the safety of our hostages,” Netanyahu added. “Whoever dares to harm our hostages will pay the price.”
Updated
Here is the statement from the Israeli military in regards to the report earlier that seven hostages – two Israelis and five Thai nationals – had been handed over to the Red Cross (see 11.27am GMT).
“According to information communicated by the Red Cross, seven hostages, including two Israelis and five foreign nationals, were transferred to them and are on their way toward IDF (army) and ISA (security agency) forces in the Gaza Strip,” the military said.
The two Israeli hostages to be freed were Gadi Moses and Arbel Yehoud. Five Thais were also to be released.
Updated
Preparations have been under way for the release of Palestinians prisoners as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal. Here are some images via the newswires:
Reporting from Tel Aviv:
US president Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, has just visited Hostage Square as the crowd waited for confirmation that Gadi Moses had been handed to the Red Cross.
Several, when they realised who was there, raced to pay personal tribute to Witkoff. “Thank you for freeing the hostages, thank you to Mr Trump,” one shouted.
Witkoff went for a meeting in a public library beyond, where the families of hostages have a room they use for meetings – but there is no confirmation he met any of them.
He had earlier met the four female soldiers freed on Saturday. He’s now left in a convoy.
Updated
Israeli army says Red Cross confirms it has seven hostages - two Israelis and five Thai nationals
The Israeli army says the Red Cross has confirmed that it has seven hostages – two Israelis and five Thai nationals.
More details soon …
Top Palestinian militant to be freed in Israel prisoner exchange
Zakaria Zubeidi, a former leader of a Palestinian militant group jailed for attacks that killed several Israelis, will be released on Thursday as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Zubeidi, 49, rose to prominence during the second intifada, a Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s, becoming one of the most well-known militant leaders in Jenin and its refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
It was during the uprising that Zubeidi’s mother was shot and killed when the Israeli army raided the camp, reports AFP.
He is known by Israeli security services as the man behind several deadly, high-profile attacks against Israelis.
Updated
The Israeli army has released pictures of Agam Berger being reunited with her parents:
Freed Israeli soldier, Agam Berger, is on her way to hospital, said Israel’s military, where she will undergo a medical assessment.
“The returning hostage, IDF soldier Agam Berger, together with her parents, just took off aboard an Israeli air force helicopter to make her way to the hospital where she will receive medical treatment,” the military said in a statement.
Here is a video of Berger being released earlier:
Updated
Israel’s Channel 12 are also saying that the third Israeli hostage expected to be released today, Gadi Moses, has been handed over to the Red Cross.
More details soon …
Israeli hostage Arbel Yehoud handed over to Red Cross
Israeli hostage Arbel Yehoud has been handed over to the Red Cross, Israel’s Channel 12 said, as footage showed her surrounded by a surging crowd and armed Palestinian militants in a chaotic scene in southern Gaza on Thursday.
Updated
International staff working for the UN’s main agency serving Palestinians have been forced to leave Israel, after its ban on the agency came into effect.
As the UN flag was still flying above the headquarters building in Jerusalem, Palestinian staff were not present at the site over security concerns amid a planned “celebration” by Israeli rightwing groups outside the compound.
While Unrwa said on Thursday that it would continue working in Gaza and the West Bank for as long as possible, it added it had received no communications from Israel on how the ban would be implemented – most crucially over the delivery of aid to Gaza.
The Israeli ban went ahead on Thursday after the country’s supreme court rejected a petition by Palestinian human rights group Adalah contesting the new law prohibiting Unrwa.
The court did note that the legislation “prohibits Unrwa activity only on the sovereign territory of the state of Israel”, but did not prohibit such activity in Gaza and the West Bank.
The ban does apply, however, to Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem, where Unrwa has a field headquarters for its operations in the West Bank.
About 25 international staff left Israel on Wednesday after Israel had refused to issue visas or extend existing ones. International staff make up about 2% of the agency’s workforce.
“The headquarters is still there, and flag is still up,” said Juliette Touma, an Unrwa spokesperson.
“It’s a UN compound which means it must be protected. We don’t have plans to close our operations,” she said, adding that their work in the West Bank and Gaza was continuing.
“But we are in the dark. We have not received any instructions from Israel how the ban will be enforced beyond being told to vacate.”
Spain calls for Israel to drop Unrwa ban, describing the UN agency as 'essential'
In a statement on Thursday morning, the Spanish foreign ministry called for Israel to drop its ban on Unrwa, saying the move risked endangering both lives and the ceasefire.
“The government rejects the entry into force of the Knesset laws that prevent Unrwa operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and calls for their application to be suspended,” it said.
It added:
Spain expresses its deepest concern about the impact that this decision will have on the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, jeopardising the ceasefire that began on January 19.
Unrwa is essential and irreplaceable for the lives of the 6 million refugees to whom it provides essential services, and for regional stability, and Spain firmly supports its work.”
Spain’s socialist-led government has been one of the most outspoken European critics of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
In November 2023, the Israeli government recalled its ambassador in Madrid and said it would be reprimanding Spain’s top diplomat in Tel Aviv after the prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said he had “genuine doubts” about whether Israel was complying with international humanitarian law in its offensive in Gaza.
At the end of May last year, Spain joined Ireland and Norway in officially recognising a Palestinian state.
If you missed it earlier, we posted on the who else is expected to be released by Hamas and Israel today. There are two other Israelis expected to be freed on Thursday: Arbel Yehoud, 29, and Gadi Moses, an 80-year-old man. There has been no official confirmation yet of the identities of the Thai nationals who will be released by Hamas.
Among the people expected to be released from prisons in Israel, is Zakaria Zubeidi – a prominent former militant leader and theater director who took part in a dramatic jailbreak in 2021 before being rearrested days later.
You can read more here.
Updated
The Israeli army said it intercepted a reconnaissance drone on Thursday launched by Lebanon’s Hezbollah towards Israel, reports Reuters.
No other information has been given but we will update if further details come through.
At Wiwwaeo Sriaoun’s home in Udon Thani, north-east Thailand, everyone is anxiously following the news on their phones. Wiwwaeo’s son Watchara, 33, was one of dozens of Thai migrant workers kidnapped from the farms on which they were working in southern Israel on 7 October 2023.
Five of the six Thais still being held hostage are due to be released on Thursday. However their names are yet to be confirmed.
“I’m with [Watchara’s] aunt and other relatives, including my grandchild. All of us are just waiting for good news and praying that Watchara and his friends will come back,” said Wiwwaeo.
She was told by the Royal Thai embassy in Israel that she will get a call when names of the Thai hostages to be released are confirmed. “I’m hoping that one of them will be my son,” she said.
Watchara’s daughter, Irada, who is nine, had just arrived home from school, she said. She was hoping for good news. Neighbours had sent messages of support.
Watchara moved to work in Israel three years ago with his younger brother, hoping to save up money and pay off the family’s debts. Israel has been a common destination for Thai migrant workers as the salaries there are much higher than those offered back home. Most work in farming jobs.
Since the 7 October attacks, the Israeli government said they made up the largest single group of foreign dead and missing. In 2023, 23 Thais were released following diplomatic efforts that involved neighbouring Malaysia – which has ties with Hamas, having hosted its leaders in the past – as well as Qatar, Israel, Egypt, Iran and the International Committee of the Red Cross. In total, 46 Thais have been killed.
Updated
Reporting from Tel Aviv:
A crowd gathered from early morning in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square, many carrying placards with the faces of the three Israelis due for release on Thursday.
They cheered as live footage from Gaza showed soldier Agam Berger, 19, the first to be handed over, alive and walking independently, surrounded by Hamas fighters.
“She made it,” said Yahel Oren, 31, watching the large screen in tears. “Its hard to think of her alone there, but at least we can count the minutes she has left.”
Oren served a decade ago at the Nahal Oz base where Berger was captured. Part of a group campaigning for the freedom of the female ‘spotter’ troops held in Gaza, she was wearing a T-shirt saying “once a spotter always a spotter”.
There were cheers again after Berger, the last female soldier held in Gaza, was handed to the Red Cross in the north of the strip.
Two civilian hostages, Arbel Yehoud 29, and Gadi Moses, 80, were expected to be released later in the morning in southern Gaza.
By late morning the crowd was hundreds strong, with schoolchildren and parents pushing babies, beside veterans of the long campaign to “bring them home”. Some had taken the day off, to join the crowd for a rare moment of joy after more than a year of anguish.
One waved a Thai flag, for five Thai nationals also due for release on Thursday. They have not yet been named.
Updated
Ruth Michaelson and Obaida Hamad in Suwayda:
Suwayda is well equipped for protests. The central square of the city, home to one of Syria’s larger minority communities, hosts the crowds of weekly – or sometimes even daily – demonstrators calling for the representation and public services they have demanded for years.
Long before the fall last month of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, the southern province of the same name had become a byword for resistance to rule by Damascus, unafraid to protest despite Assad’s crackdown on dissent and his hollow pledges to protect communities like theirs.
The area is overwhelmingly filled with members of the Druze sect, who follow an esoteric form of Islam whose adherents span a swath of Lebanon and Syria, including the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Even before Assad fled last month as an insurgency reached Damascus, residents of Suwayda had been demanding a secular state that enshrined minority rights, and are now emphatically insisting their voices be heard in the new Syria.
“Since last August until now we’ve been protesting daily,” said Alia Kuntar, a lawyer, after the weekly demonstration held in Suwayda City’s central square in front of a metal pavilion emblazoned with the words “Peace to all Syrians”. “And we will keep protesting until we get the state we want. We haven’t felt any crackdown from the new government, but equally we didn’t see any action on the ground in response to our demands.”
She added: “Of course, we’ll increase our demonstrations until we get what we want.”
Protests in Suwayda began in August 2023 for increased public services and quickly spilled into demands for Assad to go, in a place that his regime had long ignored. The southern province was a rare pocket of resistance for well over a year before his rule collapsed amid a wider insurgency at the end of 2024. It now presents a challenge for Syria’s caretaker government, which is led by the Islamists who toppled Assad.
Who is expected to be released today by Israel and Hamas?
The other two Israelis expected to be released today are Arbel Yehoud, 29, and Gadi Moses, an 80-year-old man. There has been no official confirmation of the identities of the Thai nationals who will be released, reports the Associated Press (AP).
Israel said Yehoud was supposed to have been freed Saturday and delayed the opening of crossings to northern Gaza when she was not.
A number of foreign workers were taken captive along with dozens of Israeli civilians and soldiers during Hamas’s 7 0ctober 2023 attack. Twenty-three Thais were among more than 100 hostages released during a weeklong ceasefire in November 2023. Israel says eight Thais remain in captivity, two of whom are believed to be dead.
According to the AP, of the people expected to be released from prisons in Israel, 30 are serving life sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks against Israelis. Zakaria Zubeidi, a prominent former militant leader and theater director who took part in a dramatic jailbreak in 2021 before being rearrested days later, is also among those to be released.
The United States, Egypt and Qatar, which brokered the ceasefire after a year of tough negotiations, resolved the dispute with an agreement that Yehoud would be released on Thursday. Another three hostages, all men, are expected to be freed on Saturday along with dozens more Palestinian prisoners.
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Away from Gaza and Israel, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani arrived on Thursday in Damascus, Syria, Al Jazeera reported, the first visit by a foreign head of state since Bashar al-Assad’s fall.
Freed Israeli soldier in army custody, says military
The Israeli military said on Thursday that freed Israeli female soldier Agam Berger had been handed over to the army by the Red Cross after her release in Gaza by Hamas.
“The returning hostage is currently being accompanied by … special forces and ISA (Israel Security Agency – Shin Bet) forces on her return to Israeli territory, where she will undergo an initial medical assessment,” the military said in a statement.
Here are some of the images showing the reaction in Tel Aviv today:
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At a gathering in Tel Aviv, people cheered, clapped and whistled as they saw images of Agam Berger being released on a TV screen, next to a large clock that’s counted the days the hostages have been in captivity, reports the Associated Press (AP).
Some held signs saying “Agam we’re waiting for you at home”.
Here is an image of the Israel soldier Agam Berger who has just been handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross in Gaza’s Jabalia.
The Israeli military have confirmed that the Red Cross received an Israeli hostage in Gaza, reports Reuters.
More details soon …
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First Israeli soldier seen waving after release by Hamas
A female Israeli soldier has been seen waving from a podium set up at the hostage handover location in Gaza, reports Reuters. Live TV showed the soldier being led by armed men to the stage, according to the news agency.
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Here are a couple of images that have come in via the newswires:
Red Cross vehicles arrive at hostage handover point in Gaza
Live TV shows Red Cross vehicles arriving at the hostage handover point in Gaza, reports Reuters.
Earlier, militants from Hamas and allied groups Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees arrived at the site in Khan Younis ahead of the handover of Israeli hostages, according to Hamas sources and witnesses.
According to Reuters, the spokesperson of the Islamic Jihad armed wing said on the Telegram platform that the group “completed procedures to hand over two Israeli hostages”.
Opening summary
Three Israeli hostages are to be released on Thursday under the terms of the ceasefire deal with Hamas have been named as Arbel Yehoud, 29, Agam Berger, 20, and Gadi Mozes, 80. Five Thai nationals are also set to be released, although their names have not been publicly released. In exchange, Israel will free 110 Palestinian prisoners, including 30 minors, according to NGO the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club.
The main UN agency serving Palestinians in the occupied territories, including Gaza, looks set to be shut down on Thursday as Israel defied widespread international support for the agency in a move Unrwa predicted would “sabotage Gaza’s recovery and political transition”.
And for a third straight day, thousands of Palestinians in southern Gaza trekked by foot, motorbike and animal-drawn carts back to their homes in the war-ravaged north after Israeli forces withdrew from the two main roads earlier this week.
The column of people stretched for miles along Gaza’s coastal road on Wednesday. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that over 376,000 Palestinians had reached northern Gaza from the south.
Here are some more recent developments:
Ahmed al-Sharaa, the former leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist rebel group which led the military operation to topple Bashar al-Assad last month, has been appointed president of Syria for a “transitional period”.
Al-Qaida’s affiliate group in Syria, Hurras al-Din, has announced its dissolution just weeks after the regime of Bashar al-Assad was toppled by Islamist group HTS.
US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff visited Gaza on Wednesday, then met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The US envoy met with Netanyahu alone for more than two hours, an Israeli official said, before they were joined by other ministers. An Israeli government spokesperson and the White House official declined to provide any details on Witkoff’s visit to Gaza, which Israel’s public broadcaster Kan said included an inspection of the Netzarim corridor.
An Israeli airstrike on Wednesday killed at least 10 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said, in an attack which the Israeli military said targeted armed militants. The airstrike was in the area of Tubas, in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.
Turkey on Wednesday condemned an Israeli strike that killed three of its citizens who attempted to illegally cross from Lebanon to Israel. “It has been learned that the three Turkish citizens, with whom contact had been lost while attempting to cross illegally from Lebanon to Israel, lost their lives as a result of an Israeli airstrike in the region,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Egypt’s president rejected on Wednesday a suggestion by President Donald Trump that Palestinians from the war-torn Gaza Strip be moved to neighbouring Egypt and Jordan, saying it would undermine the idea of an independent Palestinian state and that an influx of refugees could destabilise his country. In his first public comments on Trump’s suggestion, Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said “there are historical rights that cannot be ignored” and called the idea “an injustice” to which Egypt would not be party.
The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mirjana Spoljaric, told the UN general assembly that “respect for international humanitarian law is in crisis” and “threatening the very humanity that these laws seek to preserve”, citing the situations Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank.
The official death toll in Gaza since Israel launched its war on the territory after the 7 October attacks now stands at 47,417, according to the territory’s ministry of health. In its latest daily update, the ministry added that the latest figure for people injured was 111,571.
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