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Israel-Gaza latest: Israel calls up reserve forces as ceasefire threat pushes Gaza back to brink of war


Boris Johnson says Mar-a-Lago great place for people of Gaza to settle

Israel will resume “intense” fighting in Gaza if more hostages are not released by Saturday noon, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned as he ordered the army to send more troops to the war-torn region.

“The military will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated,” Mr Netanyahu said in a video statement on Tuesday after he issued a demand for an unspecified number of hostages to be returned.

His ultimatum came after Donald Trump threatened to let “hell break out” in Gaza if all Israeli hostages were not freed by Saturday. So far, 21 Israeli hostages have been released under the truce signed last month. It’s understood76 hostages remain.

Hamas suspended the release of hostages after accusing Israel of breaching ceasefire obligations, including the delaying the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza, carrying out strikes across the enclave and hindering the entry of humanitarian aid.

As fears grow over a return to fighting, Mr Netanyahu said he had ordered the military to gather forces in and around Gaza. The military also announced it was deploying additional forces to Israel’s south, including mobilising reservists.

Egypt and Qatar are stepping up efforts to save the Gaza ceasefire deal, state-affiliated Egypt’s Al Qahera news TV reported on Wednesday, citing an Egyptian source.

The ceasefire has looked increasingly fragile since Hamas said this week it was postponing the release of any more Israeli hostages held in Gaza, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement.

US President Donald Trump has warned Palestinians that “hell will break loose” if Israeli hostages are not released on Saturday. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will resume “intense fighting” if Hamas does not meet the deadline.

Egyptian sources told Reuters that Qatar and Egypt were in discussions with Hamas and Israel to prevent the cancellation of the ceasefire deal and to ensure its completion.

Egypt and Qatar alongside the United States brokered the deal that took effect on January 19 after more than a year of extensive diplomatic efforts.

Alex Ross12 February 2025 15:19

Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo for Gaza ceasefire talks

A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Wednesday to continue Gaza ceasefire talks with the second phase of the deal supposed to get underway, a statement by the Palestinian militant group said.

Hamas said earlier this week it would stop the release of hostages scheduled for Saturday until further notice.

Alex Ross12 February 2025 14:54

Egypt’s president to stay away from White House if Gaza displacement on agenda – reports

Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will not travel to Washington for talks at the White House as long as the agenda includes US president Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza, two Egyptian security sources have said.

Mr Trump has infuriated the Arab world with a plan to permanently displace the population of more than 2 million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, claim U.S. control of it and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

He has demanded Egypt and Jordan take in the Palestinians, and has threatened to withdraw aid from the two U.S.-allied Arab states if they refuse.

Egypt has said Mr Trump had extended an open invitation to Sisi to visit the White House earlier this month. A US official said no date for such a visit has been set. The Egyptian presidency and foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Alex Ross12 February 2025 14:20

UAE supports two-state solution for Gaza

United Arab Emirates president Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan told US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday that peace efforts in the region should be on the basis of a two-state solution for the conflict conflict, state news agency WAM reported.

It said the UAE, one of the few Arab countries that normalised relations with Israel, categorically rejected any attempt to displace the Palestinians and deny them “inalienable rights”.

US president Donald Trump caused outrage in the Arab world earlier this week when he proposed the US should take over the Gaza Strip and Gazans should be resettled elsewhere

United Arab Emirates president Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
United Arab Emirates president Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Alex Ross12 February 2025 13:45

Why is the Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas at risk of collapse?

As uncertainty continues over the truce, we’ve put together an explainer on why the deal is at risk of collapse, and what could happen next:

Alex Ross12 February 2025 13:00

Humanitarian aid arriving Gaza – in pictures

Pictures taken today showing humanitarian aid coming into the southern Gaza town of Rafah.

On Sunday, the United Nations’ humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said famine had been mostly averted in Gaza thanks to the surge of aid entering the territory during the fragile ceasefire.

(AP)
(AP)

Alex Ross12 February 2025 12:03

Israeli forces deployed in and around Gaza amid fears over end to ceasefire

As concerns grow that the month-old ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will break down, we’re just hearing that Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has mobilised troops in the Gaza region.

Under the ceasefire deal, the Palestinian militant group agreed to free three more hostages on Saturday – but has since said it was suspending the handover because of what it said were Israeli violations of the terms.

Mr Netanyahu has warned Israel would resume “intense fighting” if Hamas did not meet the deadline, but did not say how many hostages should be freed.

He said he had ordered the military to gather forces in and around Gaza, and the military announced shortly afterwards that it was deploying additional forces to Israel’s south, including mobilising reservists.

Alex Ross12 February 2025 11:15

Two people struck in Gaza over flying a drone, says Israeli military

The Israeli military says it struck two people in the southern Gaza Strip who were flying a drone.

It said Wednesday that the drone was observed entering Gaza from Israel after past attempts to use drones to smuggle in weapons.

Munir al-Bursh, director general of Gaza’s health ministry, said Tuesday that at least 92 Palestinians have been killed and more than 800 wounded by Israeli fire since the fragile ceasefire took hold last month.

The Israeli military says it has fired upon people who approach its forces or enter certain areas in violation of the truce.

Hamas has threatened to delay the next release of hostages, accusing Israel of violating the agreement by firing on people and by not allowing the stipulated amounts of tents, shelters and other vital aid to enter the territory.

Israel, with the support of President Donald Trump, has warned that it will resume the fighting if hostages are not freed on Saturday.

Alex Ross12 February 2025 11:04

Why has Jordan rejected Trump’s plan to resettle Palestinians?

Jordan’s King Abdullah II once again rejected any mass displacement of Palestinians after meeting with President Donald Trump, who has called for the Gaza Strip’s roughly 2 million residents to be removed from the war-ravaged territory.

Trump has suggested they could be resettled in Jordan and Egypt, both of which are vehemently opposed to any such scenario.

The Palestinians also reject Trump’s plan, which they view as an attempt to forcibly displace them from part of their homeland. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have also rejected such plans.

During his meeting with Trump, Abdullah volunteered to accept up to 2,000 children from Gaza who have cancer or otherwise require medical treatment.

But in a post on X after the meeting, he “reiterated Jordan’s steadfast position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank,” adding that it was a “unified Arab position.”

Jordan and Egypt have made peace with Israel but support the creation of a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem.

They fear that the permanent displacement of Gaza’s population could make that impossible.

Jordan's King Abdullah II with US president Trump
Jordan’s King Abdullah II with US president Trump (Getty Images)

Alex Ross12 February 2025 10:07

What is Trump’s relationship like with North Korea?

It’s still early days for the Trump administration, and we’re yet to see how exactly the US president will deal with North Korea in his second term in office.

Last week, he said his team “will have relations with North Korea”, adding that he gets “along with them very well”.

During his first term, Mr Trump met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on three occasions, becoming the first sitting US president to step on North Korean soil since the end of the Korean war.

However, the pair are in disagreement over the future of Gaza, with North Korea a strong critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Now the country’s news agency has called the US a “ferocious robber” over Mr Trump’s plan to take ownership of the Gaza region.

North Korea has also raised alarm over the docking a US submarine in the South Korean city of Busan.

We will have to see how, and if, Mr Trump responds to North Korea in the coming days

(AFP via Getty Images)

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