Will Israel and Hamas ceasefire enter Phase 2? Israel negotiators travel to Qatar for new talks
Senior fellow for Middle East and African Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, Steven Cook joins Katy Tur to provide the latest on President Trump's hostage negotiator breaking long-standing precedent by meeting with Hamas militants and doubts that the ceasefire will move to phase 2.
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Hamilton Spectator
12 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Israel retrieves body of Thai hostage as 95 more people reported killed in Gaza offensive
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel said Saturday that it had retrieved the body of a Thai hostage abducted into the Gaza Strip during the Hamas-led attack that sparked the war, as the Israeli military continued its offensive, killing at least 95 people in the past 24 hours, according to Gaza's health ministry. Nattapong Pinta's body was returned to Israel in a special military operation. Pinta came to Israel to work in agriculture. Israel's government said that he was seized from Kibbutz Nir Oz and killed early in the war, which began on Oct. 7, 2023. Thailand's foreign ministry reported that the last Thai hostage in Gaza was confirmed dead, and said the bodies of two others are yet to be retrieved. Fifty-five hostages remain in Gaza. Israel says more than half are dead. Families were rallying again Saturday evening in Israel, calling for a ceasefire deal that would bring everyone home. Israel's defense minister said that Pinta's body was retrieved from the Rafah area in southern Gaza. The army said that he was seized by the Mujahideen Brigades, the small armed group that also took two Israeli-American hostages, Judith Weinstein and Gad Haggai, whose bodies were retrieved on Thursday. Thais were the largest group of foreigners held captive by Hamas militants. Many of the agricultural workers lived on the outskirts of southern Israeli kibbutzim and towns, and Hamas militants overran those places first. A total of 46 Thais have been killed during the war, according to Thailand's foreign ministry. Separately, Hamas issued an unusual warning about another hostage, Matan Zangauker, saying Israel's military had surrounded the area where he's being held and that any harm that came to him during a rescue attempt would be Israel's responsibility. Israel's military didn't immediately comment. Israel continues its military offensive Four Israeli strikes hit the Muwasi area in southern Gaza between Rafah and Khan Younis. In northern Gaza, one strike hit an apartment, killing seven people including a mother and five children. Their bodies were taken to Shifa hospital 'Stand up, my love,' one weeping woman said, touching the shrouded bodies. Another strike in Gaza City killed six members of a family, including two children, according to the Shifa and al-Ahli hospitals. Israel said that it was responding to Hamas' 'barbaric attacks' and dismantling its capabilities. It said it takes all feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm. Reports say some of the dead tried to get food aid Staff at Nasser hospital, which received the bodies of six people over the past 24 hours, said that they were killed while on their way to get food aid. Much of Gaza's population of more than 2 million relies on aid after widespread destruction of agriculture and markets as well as a recent Israeli blockade. Experts have warned of famine. Israel's army said that despite warnings that the aid distribution area is an active combat zone during nighttime hours, several suspects attempted to approach troops operating in the Tel al-Sultan area overnight 'in a manner that posed a threat.' The army said that troops called out, but as the suspects continued advancing, they fired warning shots. An army official who couldn't be named in line with military procedures said that the shots were fired about a kilometer (half-mile) from the distribution site. Over the past two weeks, shootings have occurred frequently near the new hubs where thousands of desperate Palestinians are being directed to collect food. Witnesses say nearby Israeli troops have opened fire, and more than 80 people have been killed , according to Gaza hospital officials. Israel's military has said that it fired warning shots or, in some instances, at individuals approaching troops. The hubs are run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation , a new group of mainly American contractors. Israel wants GHF to replace humanitarian groups in Gaza that distribute aid in coordination with the United Nations. A GHF spokesperson, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with the group's rules, said that it didn't feed Gaza residents on Saturday and blamed Hamas threats. There was no immediate Hamas response. Israel accuses Hamas of siphoning off aid under the U.N.-led system. The U.N. and aid groups deny there's significant diversion of aid to militants and say the new system — which they have rejected — allows Israel to use food as a weapon, violates humanitarian principles and won't be effective. The U.N says it has been unable to distribute much aid under its own system because of Israeli military restrictions on movements and insecurity. Separately, Palestinians lined up at a soup kitchen in Gaza City for handouts on the second day of Eid al-Adha . 'I have been standing here for more than an hour and a half. I feel I have a sunstroke, and I am in need,' said the waiting Farida al-Sayed, who said she had six people to feed. 'I only had lentils, and I ran out of them.' Death tolls since the war began Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7 attack and abducted 251 hostages. Most were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight living hostages and recovered dozens of bodies. Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's health ministry, which doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants. The offensive has destroyed large parts of Hamas-run Gaza and displaced around 90% of its population of roughly 2 million Palestinians. ___ Mohammad Jahjouh reported from Rafah, Gaza Strip. Bassem Mroue contributed to this report from Beirut. ___ Follow the AP's war coverage at ___ A previous version of this story was corrected to show that the previous bodies were recovered on Thursday, not Friday. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Los Angeles Times
15 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Israel says it retrieved the body of a Thai hostage taken to Gaza when the war began
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel said Saturday it had retrieved the body of a Thai hostage abducted into Gaza during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war against Hamas. The prime minister's office said Nattapong Pinta's body was returned to Israel in a special military operation. Pinta was seized from Kibbutz Nir Oz and killed early in the war, the government said. Thailand's foreign ministry in a statement confirmed that the last Thai hostage in Gaza was confirmed dead. It said the bodies of two others are yet to be retrieved. Israel's defense minister said Pinta's body was retrieved from the Rafah area in southern Gaza. He had come to Israel to work in agriculture. The news came two days after the bodies of two Israeli-American hostages were retrieved. Fifty-five hostages remain in Gaza, and Israel says more than half are dead. The army said Pinta was seized by the Mujahideen Brigades, the small armed group that it said also abducted and killed Shiri Bibas and her two small children. The same group took the two Israeli-American hostages, Judih Weinstein and Gad Haggai, whose bodies were retrieved Thursday. Thais were the largest group of foreigners held captive by Hamas militants. Many of the agricultural workers lived in compounds on the outskirts of southern Israeli kibbutzim and towns, and Hamas militants overran those places first. A total of 46 Thais have been killed during the conflict, according to Thailand's foreign ministry. Separately, Hamas issued an unusual warning about another hostage, Matan Zangauker, saying Israel's military had surrounded the area where he is held and that any harm to him during a rescue attempt would be Israel's responsibility. Israel has continued its military offensive across Gaza. Four strikes hit the Muwasi area in southern Gaza between Rafah and Khan Younis. In northern Gaza, one strike hit an apartment, killing seven people including a mother and five children. Their bodies were taken to Shifa hospital. 'Stand up, my love,' one weeping woman said, touching the shrouded bodies. Another strike in Gaza City killed six members of a family, including two children, according to the Shifa and al-Ahli hospitals. Israel said it was responding to Hamas' 'barbaric attacks' and dismantling its capabilities. It said it takes all feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm. Staff at Nasser hospital, where six of the bodies over the past 24 hours were taken, said they were killed while on their way to get food aid. Much of Gaza's population of over 2 million now relies on such aid after widespread destruction of agriculture and markets as well as a recent Israeli blockade of two and a half months. Experts have warned of famine in the territory. Israel's army said that despite warnings that the distribution area is an active combat zone during nighttime hours, several suspects attempted to approach troops operating in the Tel al-Sultan area overnight 'in a manner that posed a threat to the troops.' The army said troops called out, but as the suspects continued advancing, they fired warning shots. Shootings have occurred frequently near the new hubs where thousands of desperate Palestinians are being directed to collect food. The hubs are run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a new group of mainly American contractors. Israel wants the GHF to replace humanitarian groups in Gaza that distribute aid in coordination with the United Nations. Israel accuses Hamas of siphoning off aid under the U.N.-led system. The U.N. and aid groups deny there is significant diversion of aid to militants and say the new system — which they have rejected — allows Israel to use food as a weapon, violates humanitarian principles and won't be effective. Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 2023 attack and abducted 251 hostages. Most were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight living hostages and recovered dozens of bodies. Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The offensive has destroyed large parts of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its population of roughly 2 million Palestinians. Mednick and Jahjouh write for the Associated Press. This story has been corrected to note that the previous bodies were recovered on Thursday, not Friday. Jahjouh reported from Rafah, Gaza Strip. Associated Press reporter Bassem Mroue contributed from Beirut, Lebanon. Follow the AP's war coverage at
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Hamas threats to aid staff reason for halted food distribution, GHF says
The organization claimed "Hamas wants to return to a broken system it once controlled and exploited—diverting aid, manipulating distribution, and putting its own agenda." The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation announced on Saturday that the reason for temporarily pausing operations was due to threats against the organization and its staff by Hamas. "Hamas is the reason hundreds of thousands of hungry Gazans were not fed today. The group issued direct threats against GHF operations. These threats made it impossible to proceed today without putting innocent lives at risk," the statement read. "Hamas wants to return to a broken system it once controlled and exploited—diverting aid, manipulating distribution, and putting its own agenda ahead of the Palestinian people's basic needs. However, GHF will not be deterred. "We remain committed to safe, secure, and independent aid delivery. We are actively adapting our operations to overcome these threats and fully intend to resume distributions without delay." Aid distribution in Gaza was halted on Friday after the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said overcrowding had made it unsafe to continue operations, in the latest disruption to its troubled relief effort. In a day of confusing messaging, the GHF first announced its distribution sites in southern Gaza were closed, then it revealed that it had actually handed out food, before saying that it had had to close its gates as a precautionary measure. "The distribution was conducted peacefully and without incident; however, it was paused due to excessive crowding that made it unsafe to proceed," it said in a statement.
