Next phase of ceasefire looms as Israel to release more than 600 Palestinian prisoners
Israel is set to free more than 600 Palestinian prisoners as officials postpone the release. NBC News' Hala Gorani reports on how both sides are looking to move on to the next phase of the ceasefire.
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Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
UK and others sanction two far-right Israeli Cabinet ministers for ‘inciting extremist violence'
They could now face asset freezes and travel bans. In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of the five countries said Ben-Gvir and Smotrich 'have incited extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights. Extremist rhetoric advocating the forced displacement of Palestinians and the creation of new Israeli settlements is appalling and dangerous.' UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the two men 'have been inciting violence against Palestinian people for months and months and months' and 'encouraging egregious abuses of human rights.' Advertisement 'These measures are directed at individuals who directly contribute to extremist settler violence,' said Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand. 'The measures are not directed against the state of Israel itself.' Smotrich wrote on social media that he learned of the sanctions while he was inaugurating a new West Bank settlement. 'We are determined to continue building,' he said. Advertisement Ben-Gvir, also writing on social media, said 'we overcame Pharoah, we'll overcome Starmer's Wall,' referring to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Israel's government condemned the announcement, which came as traditional allies of Israel escalate denouncements of Israel's actions in Gaza, from the high civilian death toll to a months-long blockade that led to famine warnings. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called the sanctions decision 'outrageous.' He said he had discussed it with Netanyahu and they would meet next week to discuss Israel's response. He said that the move threatened to harden Hamas' stance in ongoing negotiations to end the war in Gaza and to cut short Israel's operation in Gaza before it achieves its goals. Benny Gantz, a centrist Israeli lawmaker and political rival to Netanyahu, wrote he 'vehemently' disagreed with Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, but said the move was 'profound moral mistake and sends a dangerous message to terrorists around the world.' Netanyahu is the target of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court last year over alleged war crimes in Gaza, part of a global wave of outrage at Israel's conduct during its 20-month war against Hamas. Netanyahu has denied the allegations and accused the court of being biased against Israel. The Biden administration took the rare step of sanctioning radical Israeli settlers implicated in violence in the occupied West Bank — sanctions that were lifted by President Trump. Eitay Mack, an Israeli human rights lawyer who spent years campaigning for the sanctions on Smotrich and Ben-Gvir — along with violent West Bank settlers — described Tuesday's move as 'historic.' 'It means the wall of immunity that Israeli politicians had has been broken,' he said. 'It's unbelievable that it took so long for Western governments to sanction Israeli politicians, and the fact that it's being done while Trump is president is quite amazing.' Advertisement Mack added: 'It is a message to Netanyahu himself that he could be next.' Israel captured the West Bank, along with east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians want all three territories for a future state. Successive Israeli governments have promoted settlement growth and construction stretching back decades. It has exploded under Netanyahu's far-right coalition, which has settlers in key Cabinet posts. There are now well over 100 settlements across the West Bank that house more than 500,000 settlers. The settlers have Israeli citizenship, while the territory's 3 million Palestinians live under Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority administering population centers. Most of the international community considers the settlements illegal, and Palestinians see them as the greatest obstacle to an eventual two-state solution, which is still seen internationally as the only way to resolve the conflict.
Time Magazine
an hour ago
- Time Magazine
Why the U.K. and Allies Sanctioned Israeli Ministers Ben-Gvir and Smotrich—and What Comes Next
The U.K. and several allies have imposed sanctions on Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, accusing the two far-right politicians of inciting violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Norway joined the U.K. in imposing a travel ban on Ben-Gvir—Israel's national security minister and a West Bank settler—and Finance Minister Smotrich. The five governments also froze any assets either may have in their countries. 'Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have incited extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights. These actions are not acceptable,' said British Foreign Secretary David Lammy. 'This is why we have taken action now – to hold those responsible to account.' The British government reaffirmed its support for a two-state solution and described the ongoing violence against Palestinians in the West Bank as 'completely unacceptable.' The sanctions come as the U.K. and other European nations increase pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to lift the blockade on aid into Gaza, where humanitarian experts warn that famine is imminent. "Britain has already tried once to prevent us from settling the cradle of our homeland, and we cannot do it again,' responded Smotrich, referring to a 1939 British document limiting Jewish migration. 'We are determined God willing to continue building," Smotrich added, speaking at the inauguration of a new settlement in the Hebron Hills. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the sanctions as 'outrageous,' adding that the government would convene a special meeting to determine its response to what he called an 'unacceptable decision.' Here's what to know about the sanctions. What the sanctions mean for Ben-Gvir and Smotrich The British Foreign Office said the sanctions imposed on Ben-Gvir and Smotrich were effective immediately due to their 'repeated incitement of violence against Palestinian civilians.' The Israeli cabinet ministers are now subject to a U.K. travel ban, will have any assets in the country frozen, and are barred from directing, managing or promoting a British company. The Foreign Office called on the Israeli government to crack down on settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, and emphasized that 'measures today cannot be seen in isolation from events in Gaza, where Israel must uphold international humanitarian law.' In May, the British government announced it was suspending negotiations with Israel on a prospective trade agreement. What led to the sanctions? On May 19, Prime Minister Keir Starmer joined Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron in signing a joint statement condemning both Israel's blockade of humanitarian aid into Gaza and the expansion of settlements in the West Bank. An estimated 529,455 Jewish settlers currently live in settlements in the West Bank, excluding those living in East Jerusalem. The United Nations considers these settlements illegal under international law. Violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has escalated since the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel, during which militants killed approximately 1,200 people and took around 250 others hostage. Between Jan. 1, 2024, and April 30, 2025, at least 616 Palestinians, including 115 children, had been killed by settlers or the Israeli military according to the U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). In the same period, OCHA recorded 1,936 incidents of violence toward Palestinians, with 41,272 being displaced in the West Bank. Who are Ben-Gvir and Smotrich? Cabinet members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich lead far-right parties that had been regarded as outside the mainstream of Israeli politics until Benjamin Netanyahu invited them into a ruling coalition —which they now hold the power to disband. Smotrich's Religious Zionism party holds 14 seats in the 120-seat Knesset while Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party holds six. The two ministers are known for their far-right political views and strong support for Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank. Smotrich, born in the occupied Golan Heights in 1980, has repeatedly called for Israeli settlers to return to Gaza. On May 30, Smotrich announced plans to establish 22 new settlements in the West Bank—a move widely regarded as illegal under international law. He called the expansion a 'historic decision,' saying, 'We have succeeded in creating a profound strategic change, returning the State of Israel to a path of construction, Zionism, and vision.' Self-described as a 'fascist homophobe,' Smotrich has previously advocated for government reprisal attacks on Palestinians and supported segregated maternity wards for Jewish and Arab mothers. Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's national security minister, has a long history of far-right activism. A former disciple of the extremist Rabbi Meir Kahane, Ben-Gvir was known in his youth for his affiliation with Kach, a Jewish supremacist group outlawed in both Israel and the United States as a terrorist organization. By his early 30s, he had been convicted of incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organization. Though he has since rebranded himself as a mainstream political figure, Ben-Gvir continues to advocate for hardline policies against Palestinians and is a vocal proponent of expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
Israel deports Greta Thunberg, other activists on Gaza aid boat
Israeli forces intercepted the boat, operated by a pro-Palestinian activist group called the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, on Monday. The passengers also included Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. In February, she was blocked from entering Israel for promoting boycotts of the country. Advertisement At a news conference, Israel's foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, described the ship's voyage as a public relations stunt. He said it was Israel's intention to deliver to Gaza 'the tiny amount of aid on the yacht that they did not consume.' The campaigners had said the boat was transporting urgently needed goods, including baby formula, food, and medical supplies, and that they planned to breach Israel's long-standing naval blockade of Gaza. Thunberg has been an outspoken opponent of Israel's blockade on the enclave and its conduct of the war in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel recently imposed an 80-day blockade on food and other aid from entering Gaza that it lifted last month. Hunger is now widespread in Gaza, according to international aid organizations, and a new Israeli-backed food distribution system has been marred by chaos. Advertisement 'We are doing this because, no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying,' Thunberg said last week. 'Because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity,' she added. Israel says its naval blockade is necessary to prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into the coastal enclave. Adalah, an Israeli human rights group and legal center that focuses on Palestinian rights, said that the eight activists who had refused to leave would contest their deportation at the tribunal Tuesday. The group added that its lawyers had traveled to Givon Prison in Ramleh, near Ben Gurion Airport, where the eight volunteers were being held, to represent them at the hearings. A spokesperson for Israel's immigration authority, Sabin Hadad, confirmed that four of the activists had waived their right to a hearing and said the other eight had been transferred to Givon Prison for up to 96 hours. The Foreign Ministry later said Thunberg had left Israel on a flight to France and posted photographs on social media that appeared to show her on a plane. The ministry later clarified that Sweden, Thunberg's home country, was her final destination. A spokesperson for the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, Ann Wright, confirmed that Thunberg was on a plane to Paris and then to Stockholm. The coalition 'generally encourages high-profile volunteers to leave as soon as possible to be able to speak directly to the media about their experiences to counter what the Israeli government may be saying,' Wright said. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition leads an international grassroots campaign that opposes Israel's long-standing naval blockade of Gaza by sending ships carrying humanitarian aid to the enclave. The Madleen set sail from Sicily this month. Advertisement Israel vowed to prevent the ship from reaching Gaza, saying its military would use any means to stop it from breaching the blockade. The Foreign Ministry said Monday that the Madleen had been diverted toward Israeli shores. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition said its activists had been 'kidnapped' by the Israeli military. This article originally appeared in
