Feb. 1: PM said waiting to meet with Trump before dispatching team to Qatar hostage deal talks

White House: Trump’s tariffs on Canada, China, Mexico to come into effect Tuesday

US President Donald Trump orders 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports and 10% on goods from China starting on Tuesday to address a national emergency over fentanyl and illegal immigrants entering the US, White House officials say.

Energy products from Canada will have only a 10% duty, but Mexican energy imports will be charged the full 25%, the officials tell reporters.

Trump has declared a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to back the tariffs, which allows sweeping powers to address crises.

The White House officials say there will be no exclusions from the tariffs. Moreover, in the case of Canada specifically, they said the “de minimis” US tariff exemption for small shipments under $800 would be canceled.

The moves follow through on a repeated threat Trump has made since shortly after winning last year’s presidential election, and they likely will trigger retaliation and risk igniting a trade war that could cause broad economic disruption for all countries involved.

It is unclear if Trump, who golfed at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Saturday before signing the order, will speak to the media about the duties.

Trump set the February 1 deadline to press for strong action to halt the flow of the opiate fentanyl and precursor chemicals into the US from China via Mexico and Canada, as well as to stop illegal immigrants crossing US borders.

Netanyahu said to decide not to send team to Qatar until his Trump meeting, putting truce at risk

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided not to send Israel’s negotiations team to Qatar at this stage for talks about the second phase of the ongoing ceasefire and hostage deal that are meant to kick off on Monday, the Walla news outlet reports, citing an unnamed senior Israel source.

The development is a “very worrying sign” about the implementation of the deal’s second phase, a senior Israeli official is quoted as saying, expressing hope that this won’t negatively impact the fulfillment of the ongoing, 42-day first phase.

According to the deal’s terms, negotiations on the second phase must start on Monday, the 16th day of the first phase. The second stage is expected to include the return of all the remaining living hostages held by terrorists in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for a yet-to-be-determined number of Palestinian security prisoners and a full Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.

Reports are increasingly indicating Netanyahu is seriously entertaining the possibility of resuming the war after the first phase, rather than continuing on to the second phase.

Walla reports that at the last minute, Netanyahu canceled a planned meeting tonight with Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, hostage point man Nitzan Alon and other senior negotiators, sending his military secretary Roman Gofman to update them that the premier had decided not to send the team to Qatar for now.

The source is quoted as saying Netanyahu prefers not to take any action on the matter until his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. However, delaying the negotiations until then would appear to violate the terms of the deal.

Netanyahu is reportedly seeking to appoint his confidant Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer as the head of the negotiations team instead of Barnea, arguing that the talks are chiefly diplomatic and strategic rather than security-oriented.

IDF drone strike in West Bank said to kill Palestinian prisoner freed in 2023 deal

One of two Palestinian gunmen killed in an IDF drone strike in the West Bank city of Qabatiya this evening is identified by Palestinian media as Abd Issam Alawneh.

Alawneh had been previously detained by Israel, and was released in the November 2023 hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas.

He is the fourth Palestinian released in the November 2023 deal to have been killed by Israel.

A separate drone strike in Jenin this evening killed three more Palestinians, according to media reports.

المقــاوم عبد عصام عــلاونة، أحد الأسرى الذين حررتهم المـــقاومة خلال اتفاق تبادل التهدئة بالحرب عام 2023، واستشـــهد قبل قليل بقصف طيران الاحتلال مركبة في بلدة قباطية جنوب جنين. pic.twitter.com/Ks6ROJjfXs

— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) February 1, 2025

In 1st online post, ex-hostage Karina Ariev vows to memorialize comrades who died on Oct. 7

Released hostage Karina Ariev is seen with her parents after being freed from Hamas captivity on January 25, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)

Former hostage Karina Ariev publishes her first Instagram post since her release from Gaza a week ago, thanking the soldiers fighting in Gaza and calling for the release of all the abductees.

“I was held in Hamas captivity for a year and five months. Today, thank God, I am home, in Israel,” writes Ariev, a surveillance soldier who was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, from the IDF’s Nahal Oz base.

“From now on, my personal journey, besides rehabilitation and returning to daily life, will include memorialization of my soldier friends, my commanders, colleagues and fighters who fell in the battle in the post where I served — Nahal Oz,” she says.

“I will fight for truth and justice alongside the families,” she adds.

Fifteen surveillance soldiers were killed and seven were taken hostage to Gaza in the attack. One of those hostages was recovered dead after she was murdered in captivity, another was rescued alive, and the remaining five, including Ariev, were released over the past week.

In total, 53 troops were killed in the assault on the base.

Ariev says she’s still trying to absorb the fact that she’s a well-known figure now in Israel and abroad, and has started to try to catch up on all that has happened since she was kidnapped.

“I was there — we mustn’t leave anyone behind,” Ariev adds. “I won’t rest until all are in Israel.”

Eyal Zamir’s nomination as IDF chief gets praise from across the political aisle

Then-deputy IDF chief of staff Eyal Zamir in 2022. (IDF)

Politicians across the political spectrum welcome the nomination of Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir to become the next Israel Defense Forces chief of staff.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid calls the current Defense Ministry director-general the “the right person for the job” while The Democrats’ chairman Yair Golan lauds him as “a talented officer and leader [who] will have to deal with the task of rebuilding the army, and with the burden of protecting the IDF from a dangerous and corrupt political echelon.”

MK Yuli Edelstein (Likud), the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, says that Zamir is entering his position “at an intense and fateful time” and will have the “historic task of shaping the face of the IDF for future generations.”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben Gvir both call on Zamir to reshape the IDF to be more aggressive and to shed alleged defeatist ideas about national security that are allegedly prevalent among its leadership.

“The Israeli people expect him to lead the IDF very quickly to a drastic change in the concept of security and complete victory on all fronts,” Smotrich declares, adding that Zamir will have to replace many people on the IDF general staff with “combative and determined commanders of the generation of victory.”

“This is the time to break free from the conceptions of the past, restore deterrence, and act with a strong hand against terrorism,” says Ben Gvir.

In a video message, National Unity chairman and former IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz calls Zamir “an experienced commander, with values ​​and a broad strategic vision [who] is certain to promote the mobilization of the Haredim and all populations, and to preserve the IDF as the people’s army.”

Netanyahu, Witkoff agree to meet in DC on Monday to launch talks on truce’s 2nd phase

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) meets with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff in his office in Jerusalem on January 29, 2025. (Maayan Toaf/GPO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US special envoy Steve Witkoff agreed in a conversation this evening that they will meet in Washington on Monday to initiate talks on the second stage of the hostage release deal with Hamas, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

Monday is the 16th day of the first phase of the ceasefire and hostage deal and the say on which the discussions about the second stage are slated to begin.

Witkoff will also speak this week with Qatar’s prime minister and with senior Egyptian officials, says the PMO, after which he and Netanyahu will discuss when delegations will be sent to engage in further talks about moving to the second stage of the deal.

At rally, hostages’ moms await their turns for tearful reunions

Vicky and Romi Cohen, mother and sister of hostage Nimrod Cohen, speaking at Hostages Square on February 1, 2025 (Courtesy Lior Rotstein)

At Tel Aviv’s weekly hostage rally, mothers of captives still held in the Strip speak of their happiness at seeing others released and express concerns over the long wait to be reunited with their loved ones.

“I can’t wait for that hug, the hug of a mother, when will it be my turn too?” says Vicky Cohen, mother of hostage Nimrod Cohen. “I’m waiting and waiting.”

Cohen’s voice breaks as she addresses Nimrod directly: “We are with you, you are not alone. See how many people are fighting for you.”

It’s a message repeated by Idit Ohel, mother of hostage Alon Ohel who was taken captive from the Nova desert rave.

“Alon, do you hear my voice?” says Ohel. “I know you’re strong.”

“We won’t stop playing music, because the music strengthens you and reminds us that there is hope,” says Ohel, referring to Alon’s piano playing skills.

“I dream about the moment when I’ll hug you again — I envision you at the Shabbat table,” says Ohel.

She also thanks US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “for getting us this far.”

Israelis protest for the release of hostages, in Tel Aviv on February 1, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Speaking in English, Cohen’s twin sister Romi urges the gathering to ensure the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal stays together until all those abducted are out.

“Today we were filled with joy and hope to see families reunited,” says Cohen. “This was only possible because of the deal. It is the result of a massive 15-month effort by everyone, especially President Trump and the negotiating team.”

“Keep fighting,” she tells the crowd. “Don’t let the deal collapse before everyone comes home.”

FM Sa’ar meets Thai counterpart, says Mideast won’t be stable if Hamas stays in power

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, right, meets his Thai counterpart Maris Sangiampongsa in Tel Aviv, February 1, 2025. (Shlomi Amsalem/GPO)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar tells his Thai counterpart Maris Sangiampongsa that “as long as Hamas remains in power in Gaza, there will be no stability in the entire Middle East.”

The two diplomats meet in Tel Aviv and discuss the release of the five Thai hostages from Gaza on Thursday, as well as strengthening bilateral ties, according to Sa’ar’s office.

Palestinians report 4 dead in two IDF strikes in West Bank

The Palestinian Authority health ministry reports two dead in the IDF drone strike in the West Bank city of Jenin and another two dead in a drone strike in Qabatiya.

In both strikes, the IDF said it had targeted terror operatives.

Lapid hails IDF chief nominee Zamir as ‘the right person for the job’

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid welcomes the nomination of Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir, the Defense Ministry director-general, to become the next Israel Defense Forces chief of staff.

“Congratulations to Eyal Zamir, the right person for the job. The entire people of Israel are behind you,” Lapid declares.

Zamir will become the IDF’s 24th chief of staff when he replaces Halevi, who is resigning on March 6.

Halevi congratulates intended successor Zamir, pladges smooth transition

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi attends a Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, January 28, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Outgoing IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi congratulates Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir, who has been chosen to replace him.

“I have known Eyal for many years, and I am sure that he will lead the IDF forward in the face of the expected challenges and wish him great success,” Halevi says in a statement.

“In the coming weeks, we will complete a professional and high-quality handover,” he adds.

At weekly vigil, son of freed hostage says father was uplifted by rallies

Yair Mozes, son of released hostage Gadi Mozes, speaking at Tel Aviv's Hostages Square on February 1, 2025 (Courtesy Alon Gilboa)

Yair Mozes, son of released hostage Gadi Mozes, appears with a cleanshaven face and a wide smile at the weekly Tel Aviv Hostages Square rally.

The younger Mozes had sworn to not shave until his father was returned, and was seen embracing his newly freed dad Thursday while sporting a wild, bushy beard.

“We always knew he was a strong person and he’s even stronger than we could have imagined,” says Mozes of his 80-year-old father. “A man of the earth, who raised us on that love, he helped establish the kibbutz. He is the person who said he will do everything he can to rebuild Nir Oz. These are the values we were raised on.”

Freed hostage Gadi Mozes, second right, with his children Oded, Moran and Yair at Ichilov hospital on January 30, 2025. (Courtesy)

Mozes thanks all of Israel for their support.

“My father said he saw the protests and it strengthened him when he was down,” says Mozes, who also thanks the IDF and security forces, as well as the government and negotiators, the German government, the Hostages Forum, and the Jewish communities worldwide. Gadi Mozes holds dual German and Israeli citizenship.

“This is a day that our family, Kibbutz Nir Oz and all our family have been waiting for,” says Mozes. “My heart is lighter and my head and face as well,” he adds, referring to his facial hair vow.

“My father the mensch is home at last,” says Mozes speaking in English.

He calls on US President Donald Trump to help bring about the second stage of the hostage deal.

Eyal Zamir nominated to become IDF’s 24th chief of staff after Halevi’s resignation takes effect in March

Eyal Zamir during a ceremony in Tel Aviv, July 11, 2021. (Flash90)

Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir, the Defense Ministry director-general, has been nominated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz to become the next Israel Defense Forces chief of staff.

Zamir, 59, had been considered the frontrunner candidate to replace IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, who is resigning over his responsibility for the failures that led to the Hamas terror group’s October 7, 2023, onslaught.

By law, candidates for IDF chief of staff, as well as other senior positions such as police commissioner and Bank of Israel governor, must be vetted by the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee. After that, a nominee is confirmed in a cabinet vote.

Zamir will become the IDF’s 24th chief of staff when he replaces Halevi, who is resigning on March 6.

IDF says it struck car with terror operatives in northern West Bank

The IDF says it carried out a drone strike in the West Bank city of Qabatiya, near Jenin, a short while ago.

The strike targeted a car with several terror operatives in it, the military says, adding that further details will be provided later.

The strike comes amid a major counterterrorism operation in the northern West Bank.

‘I’m at home’: Freed hostage Steinbrecher sends first message to Tel Aviv rally, thanks public

Released hostage Doron Steinbrecher speaking in a video shown at a Tel Aviv rally on February 1, 2025, at Hostages Square. (Screengrab)

At the weekly Tel Aviv rally for the hostages, a prerecorded video is shown with the first public statement from former hostage Doron Steinbrecher since she was released on January 19.

“The last time I recorded a video was the propaganda film for Hamas,” says Steinbrecher about a January 2024 propaganda clip in which she had blonde hair and wore a pink blouse. “This time, I’m sitting on a couch, comfortably, with my family looking at me.”

Steinbrecher, her hair now shorter and brown, says she’ll be at the hostage rally in person as soon as she can, holding a sign.

“You know me from that terrible video,” she says, smiling. “But I’m not blonde anymore and I won’t wear pink anymore. I’m Doron, I’m 31, and I’m not in captivity any longer and I’m at home.”

Steinbrecher says it’s important for her to send this message and for everyone to see her as she is now.

“I’m okay, and I’m here because of you and I’m okay,” she says, clasping her hands.

“Thanks to all of you who helped me and my family, people I don’t even know,” says Steinbrecher. “Thank you to the soldiers and the security forces. I’m trying to understand everything that happened during this period.”

Steinbrecher speaks about those whose loved ones are still in captivity.

“We’ll do, I’ll do all I can until all are home and we can close this circle, and we’re together in this until it’s over,” says Steinbrecher.

Steinbrecher’s mother, Simone Steinbrecher, and sister, Yamit Ashkenazi, speak at the rally at Hostages Square.

“Did you see her?” Ashkenazi says. “I want to say, ‘I told you so!'” and the crowd applauds.

“She isn’t a captive anymore,” says Ashkenazi.

Ashkenazi thanks Netanyahu and Trump for their success in securing the release of 18 hostages so far — 13 Israeli, and five Thai — in the current deal, and says she is  relying on them to fulfill the second and third stages of the hostage deal and bring home every hostage.

“I’m a mother who got to hug her daughter and I want to offer a huge thank you for that. So many won’t get to do that,” says Simone Steinbrecher. “But my heart is torn that others won’t, those who lost their loved ones.”

“We’re with you,” calls the crowd. “You are not alone.”

Yarden Bibas reportedly says Hamas taunted him about Shiri and kids; he’s clinging to hope

Yarden Bibas with IDF soldiers immediately after his release from Hamas captivity, February 1 2025. (IDF)

The three hostages who were released earlier today have all said since their return that they were held in harsh conditions, that they were frequently moved around, and that food was scarce, Kan news reports.

Keith Siegel was held by Hamas captors in Gaza City along with other hostages. He was kept in tunnels for some time, but mostly was moved between homes. His captors would lock him in a room so that he would not be spotted. Food was extremely scarce. Siegel is a vegetarian but his captors would sometimes bring him meat which he ate in order to survive, according to the report.

For many months, he did not know if his son Shai had survived the Hamas attack on Kibbutz Kfar Aza. But then he heard Shai’s voice on the radio, and was immensely relieved.

Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas have recounted that they were held together in the early days of their captivity, Kan also reported. The terrorists beat them, put them in cages and abused them physically and mentally. They were moved often and held underground and in buildings, including with other hostages.

The captors treated Calderon like a reservist soldier, and thus he was released today in military clothing.

On his release, he asked the IDF soldiers with him for a beer, and was told he would need to take it slow because he was weak.

Bibas said he was moved from place to place in Khan Younis — in homes and tunnels. He learned Arabic. He was subjected to grave psychological abuse, including being compelled to film a video after his captors claimed his wife, Shiri, and young sons Ariel and Kfir. had been killed in an IDF strike. His captors talked incessantly to him about them, the report says. Now, Kan says, “he is clinging to hope.”

Both he and Calderon saw reporting on the campaigns for the hostages, and this gave them strength and hope, they have said.

Meanwhile, in other testimony, reported by Channel 12, from female hostages released earlier in the deal, one freed hostage said it did not seem to her that Hamas has been badly hurt. She and other hostages were transferred smoothly from house to house; there was only one mess-up when she saw another hostage in the street, she said, and she had the sense that Hamas was being run professionally.

Families of these freed hostages have recounted that they were frequently told they were “going home tomorrow,” that their captors would give them food and then take it away and laugh, and that some of them were handcuffed protractedly and subjected to heavy violence. Some were put into cages for “opposing the terrorists,” the report says. Some were held in humid tunnels with little air for long periods.

Report: Netanyahu held meeting on option of resuming Gaza war, is pushing for move

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a meeting yesterday on the possibility of resuming the war in Gaza, according to Channel 13 news.

The report quotes senior Israeli officials who say that Netanyahu seems to be pushing for a resumption of the war, and has asked the IDF to present operational plans.

Report: Netanyahu may tap Minister Dermer to head negotiating team instead of Mossad chief

Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer addresses the Knesset on January 22, 2025. (Noam Moskowitz/Knesset Spokesperson's Office)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering appointing Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer head of Israel’s negotiating team for hostage talks with Hamas, according to Channel 12 news. He would take over the role from Mossad chief David Barnea.

According to the report, Barnea would remain on the team alongside Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and IDF hostage point man Nitzan Alon, with Dermer overseeing the talks.

Israeli officials tell the outlet that Netanyahu recognizes that the negotiators want do everything possible to ensure that the second stage of the hostage deal with Hamas takes place, and the premier wants to keep his options open.

According to Channel 12, officials on Netanyahu’s team say that since the main discussions are now taking place with the Trump administration, they should be led by someone with a diplomatic viewpoint, not a security one.

The report claims that Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has expressed to Netanyahu that he would prefer to work with Dermer, and that he has reservations about working with the current negotiating team.

Witkoff and Netanyahu spoke today, says Channel 12, adding that the prime minister will hold a meeting later tonight to decide whether to send a mid-level delegation to Qatar this week.

In response, Netanyahu’s office says that “the reports are not true.”

“The decisions on the negotiations will be made only after the prime minister returns from the US.”

Hostages’ relatives claim Netanyahu trying to sabotage truce, ask Trump not to let him

Yifat Zailer, cousin of Ofer Calderon who was released earlier in the day from Hamas captivity, speaks at Begin Gate in Tel Aviv on February 1, 2025. (Marcelo Sznaidman/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)

At a protest for the hostages outside Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv, a cousin of released captive Ofer Calderon, freed earlier today, says Calderon and the other two men released today were left “in hell” for a needlessly long time by a government that abandoned them in favor of far-right political interests.

“If it hadn’t been for [US] President [Donald] Trump, they would not be here,” Yifat Zailer tells the crowd, demanding that “extremists” not be allowed to torpedo the deal.

“This is a stain on [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s legacy that will not wash,” she says.

A similar vein of anger at the government runs through other speeches at the demonstration.

“Netanyahu and his associates haven’t stopped trying to sabotage the deal,” charges Dani Elgarat, brother of hostage Itzik Elgarat, slated to be released sometime in the first stage of the agreement.

Dani Elgarat, brother of hostage Itzik Elgarat, speaks at Begin Gate in Tel Aviv on February 1, 2025. (Marcelo Sznaidman/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)

Like Elgarat, the father of hostage Nimrod Cohen accuses Netanyahu of attempting to manufacture an excuse to return to fighting while blaming Hamas for the breakdown.

He also offers a warning to Trump, who is slated to meet the Israeli premier on Tuesday.

“Netanyahu is going to try to spin you like he spun Biden,” Yehuda Cohen warns. “Don’t let him.”

White House readout of Trump-Sissi call doesn’t mention idea of Egypt taking in Gazans

The White House readout on the call earlier today between US President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi makes no mention of Trump’s publicly repeated demand that Cairo take in Palestinians from Gaza.

Instead, it suffices with noting that the two “discussed Egypt’s important role in the release of hostages from Gaza” and that Sissi expressed his confidence that “Trump’s leadership could usher in a golden age of Middle East peace.”

Trump last week claimed he had already spoken to Sissi and mentioned the demand, though Egyptian officials told local media that no such call had taken place.

Ben Gvir hails Prison Service for reportedly freeing Palestinian inmates with hands bound and wearing threatening message

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir arrives at the Tel Aviv District Court ahead of the testimony of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the trial against him, December 10, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/ Flash90)

Former national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir congratulates Israel Prison Service Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi on his handling of the release of Palestinian security prisoners following a report that the International Committee of the Red Cross has protested their treatment.

According to Haaretz, the ICRC complained to the prison service that prisoners were being released with their hands bound behind their heads while wearing bracelets stating in Arabic: “The eternal nation does not forget. We will pursue our enemies and overcome them.”

Following an inquiry, the prison service replied to Haaretz with a photograph showing a prisoner bound in this way while wearing such a bracelet. Calling the prisoners “the worst of Israel’s enemies,” the statement adds that the prison service “will not compromise on the security of our people.”

In response, Ben Gvir tweets that “the terrorists’ advocate” — referring to Haaretz correspondent Josh Breiner, who reported the story — “does not understand how there is a security organization that does not bow its head to them, and treats them harshly – even when it is forced to release them because of a reckless deal.”

“Congratulations to Chief Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi for his determined policy,” he says of a prisons chief he appointed and who is close to him.

Following the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, Ben Gvir announced new restrictions on terror inmates in Israeli prisons, aimed at worsening their living conditions.

פרקליטם של המחבלים לא מבין איך יש ארגון ביטחוני שלא מכופף ראש בפניהם, ונוהג איתם ביד קשה – גם כשהוא נאלץ לשחררם בגלל עסקה מופקרת.

מברך את רב-גונדר קובי יעקובי על המדיניות הנחושה ???????? pic.twitter.com/EZJWRwckBy

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) February 1, 2025

Netanyahu’s office says he’ll discuss Gaza, hostages, Iran during Trump meeting

US president Donald Trump (left) welcomes visiting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House in Washington, DC, on March 25, 2019. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will discuss Gaza, the hostages, and “confronting all the elements of the Iranian axis” during his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, says Netanyahu’s office.

Netanyahu will be the first foreign leader hosted by Trump at the White House since his return to the presidency last month.

Photo shows US-Israeli freed hostage Keith Siegel reuniting with his wife

US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel, right, reunites with his wife Aviva shortly after being released from captivity in Gaza, February 1, 2025. (IDF)

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit releases a photo of US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel reuniting with his wife Aviva earlier today shortly after he crossed into Israel from Gaza.

Aviva was freed during a previous ceasefire in November 2023. Keith’s 97-year-old mother died in December, without seeing him a final time.

Netanyahu hails today’s smooth hostage release, warns this must continue

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks in a video statement from his office, February 1, 2025. (Screenshot/PMO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu releases a video statement from his office welcoming the three hostages released today from Gaza, and warns the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror groups that future releases must be carried out as they were today.

“Ofer, Yarden, Keith — how good it is to see you home!” he says hours after Ofer Calderon, Yarden Bibas and Keith Siegel were released from captivity in Gaza.

“After the sights we all saw on Thursday, we demanded the safe departure of our hostages in the coming releases,” he says.

On Thursday, Hamas released three Israelis and five Thai hostages. Two of the Israelis — Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Mozes — and the Thai nationals were released in an uncontrolled and dangerous handover surrounded by hundreds of masked gunmen and large, seething crowds. Netanyahu warned that he would not release Palestinian prisoners if the safe release of hostages was not guaranteed, later stating that such a promise had been given.

“As you saw today,” Netanyahu says in the video, “this firm stance has proven itself. The message was conveyed, received and carried out.”

“Israel expects that all the following rounds will also be carried out safely.”

Netanyahu says that Israel’s thoughts are with Yarden Bibas’s wide and children Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas, who were abducted and held separately from him. Hamas has claimed that Shiri and the two boys were killed in captivity. Israel has not confirmed this claim, but has expressed “grave concern” for their fate and has demanded information on their status.

“We will continue to act with determination to return them to Israel and achieve all the goals of the war,” Netanyahu promises.

Kamala Harris voices joy at release of American-Israeli Keith Siegel, other hostages

US Vice President Kamala Harris delivers a concession speech for the 2024 presidential election on the campus of Howard University in Washington, November 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Former US vice president Kamala Harris welcomes the release of American-Israeli citizen Keith Siegel and the other Israeli hostages released on Saturday by Hamas as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal in the Gaza Strip.

“Doug and I are full of joy and relief to see American Keith Siegel reunited with his family,” Harris tweets, referring to her husband Douglas Emhoff.

“We join all those around the world who are celebrating his release and the release of other hostages in recent days and weeks. We continue to pray for the Americans and all of the remaining hostages held in captivity in Gaza by Hamas. We stand with them and their families. All the hostages must be brought home.”

Israel warns freed terror chief Zubeidi: ‘One mistake and you’re going to meet old friends’

Zakaria Zubeidi, 49, a Palestinian prisoner and former a top commander in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades who was released by Israel, waves a Palestinian flag as he is cheered by people after arriving in Ramallah aboard buses of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), on January 30, 2025. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

In a tweet, Defense Minister Israel Katz threatens the recently released Palestinian prisoner and former terror chief Zakaria Zubeidi, warning that “one mistake and you’re going to meet old friends.”

“We will not accept support for terrorism,” Katz writes, after Zubeidi was freed on Thursday in exchange for Israeli hostages held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.

On Friday, following an Israeli warning, Palestinian officials canceled a large planned celebration in Ramallah for Zubeidi, who organized dozens of attacks during the Second Intifada while heading the al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigades in Jenin.

Officers from the Civil Administration “conveyed unequivocal messages, according to which, the IDF will show zero tolerance towards the planned event and asserted that if there is a gathering in honor of Zubeidi, it will be dispersed quickly and aggressively,” Israeli defense sources say.

Smotrich invites new US Treasury chief Bessent to visit Israel

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich invited his American counterpart, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, to visit Israel, during a phone conversation yesterday, Smotrich’s office says.

Smotrich congratulated Bessent on his confirmation and thanked him for the Trump administration’s “unequivocal support” of Israel, the statement says.

He also told Bessent that he looks forward to working together to deepen and expand the economic relationship between the two allies.

Netanyahu and Trump will breakfast together Tuesday, then speak to press – report

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump will meet on Tuesday morning for breakfast and a working meeting, according to the Walla news outlet.

The two will hold a press conference afterward, according to the report.

Smotrich and Ben Gvir welcome hostages’ release; latter urges resuming war to ‘destroy’ Hamas

Left: National Security Minister and Otzma Yehudit party head Itamar Ben Gvir, January 16, 2025; Right: Finance Minister and Religious Zionism party head Bezalel Smotrich, January 13, 2025. (Both photos by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Otzma Yehudit party chairman Itamar Ben Gvir, both critics of the ceasefire deal, welcome the return of hostages Ofer Calderon, Yarden Bibas and Keith Siegel earlier today.

“Yarden, Keith and Ofer, welcome home! The entire people of Israel have been waiting for you and is so happy for your return,” tweets Smotrich, citing the biblical verse “Your children shall return to their own borders.”

Ben Gvir, a former national security minister who resigned from the government in protest of the deal, likewise welcomes back the hostages, stating that “we are happy and excited” about their return, “but at the same time, when we hear about the suffering our daughters and female hostages went through in captivity, we must not forget for a moment who the cruel enemy we are dealing with is.”

“Day by day, the message is clear and unambiguous to everyone: We must return to war and destroy our enemies,” Ben Gvir tweets.

Netanyahu to depart for Washington at 8 a.m. tomorrow

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) speaks to the press before departing to Washington, DC, at Ben Gurion Airport, July 22, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s flight to Washington DC has been moved up to 8 a.m. Israel time, his office announces.

The flight was originally scheduled for 10 a.m.

Netanyahu will be meeting US President Donald Trump in Washington on Tuesday.

Sissi speaks to Trump, says world ‘counting on’ him for Middle East peace

US President Donald Trump (R) and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi take part in a bilateral meeting at a hotel in Riyadh on May 21, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN)

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi tells US President Donald Trump that the world is relying on his “ability to reach a permanent and historic peace agreement” to end the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

A statement from Sissi’s office says the leaders had extended mutual invitations for state visits during a phone call and stressed the importance of continued “coordination and cooperation,” while Sissi notes “the international community is counting on President Trump’s ability to reach a permanent and historic peace agreement that ends the conflict that has existed in the region for decades.”

IDF says it carried out drone strike against terror operatives in West Bank city of Jenin

The IDF says it carried out a drone strike against a group of armed Palestinian terror operatives in the Jenin area in the northern West Bank a short while ago.

The strike comes amid a major counter-terrorism operation in the northern West Bank.

No further details are immediately available.

????Jenin
The first moments after the occupation aircraft targeted a group of Palestinians inside the eastern neighborhood of Jenin.pic.twitter.com/v4Zvoe8Ydo

— not????ioran (@imnotcioran) February 1, 2025

White House welcomes release of US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel; commits to ‘freeing all remaining hostages’

Released hostage Keith Siegel reunites with his family at Tel Aviv's Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital) on February 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

“Today, Americans celebrate the return of American-Israeli citizen Keith Siegel and two Israelis who were held captive by Hamas terrorists since October 7, 2023,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says in a statement.

“President [Donald] Trump and his administration have worked diligently to secure their release and are committed to freeing all remaining hostages,” she adds.

Images released of Keith Siegel reuniting with his children

Released hostage Keith Siegel reunites with his three daughters at Tel Aviv's Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital) on February 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

Images are published of hostage Keith Siegel reuniting with his family at Tel Aviv’s Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital).

His three daughters Ilan, Gal and Shir, sing, “Here comes our dad, he’s returned to us,” as he walks through the door, then they rush to embrace him as a group before long individual hugs.

His wife Aviva and son Shai had earlier traveled to an IDF base near Gaza to receive him upon his immediate return to Israel.

His brother Lee also embraces him at the medical center.

Released hostage Doron Steinbrecher to make first public comments at rally for those still captive

Doron Steinbrecher (in black) reunites with her family at Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, January 19, 2025. (Maayan Toaf/GPO)

Doron Steinbrecher, who was released on January 19 after more than 15 months in Hamas captivity, will make her first public statement tonight at a rally for the hostages.

According to the Hostage Family Forum, a video from Steinbrecher will be played at the main rally in Tel Aviv.

Her mother Simona Steinbrecher and sister Yamit Ashkenazi are slated to speak, as will Yair Moses, son of Gadi Moses who was released on Thursday.

The rally comes after three hostages, Yarden Bibas, Ofer Calderon and Keith Siegel, were released as part of the first phase of the hostage-ceasefire deal.

“The entire country watched emotionally today as Ofer, Yarden, and Keith were reunited with their families. Along with this joy, we will not stop until we see all hostages return home — the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial,” says the forum.

Argentina celebrates the release of former hostage Yarden Bibas

Yarden Bibas is seen on an IDF helicopter on his way to a hospital in central Israel on February 1, 2025 (Israel Defense Force)

Argentinian officials are celebrating the release of Israeli-Argentine Yarden Bibas from Hamas captivity after almost 16 months of the war in Gaza.

President Javier Milei of Argentina, a staunch supporter of Israel, posts a stream of emotional videos all morning Saturday on X showing Bibas greeting his relatives after his release with long and tearful hugs.

The Israeli Embassy in Argentina says that Bibas obtained Argentine citizenship through his wife, Shiri. Their two small children, Ariel and Kfir, are also Argentinian.

The condition of Shiri and their two sons, the youngest hostages to be abducted during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, remains unclear. Hamas claimed last year that they had been killed by an Israeli airstrike, but Israeli officials never confirmed that.

Axel Wahnish, a Sephardic rabbi and the Argentine ambassador to Israel, says that Argentine authorities are following Bibas’s release closely. He hopes that “all the kidnapped people can return safely to their homes.”

Wahnish also praises Milei for his strong condemnations of Hamas, which he says stands in contrast to the “silence of some leaders of the free world.”

Top Thai officials visit freed Thai hostages recovering in hospital

Senior Thai officials including Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa and Ambassador to Israel Pannabha Chandraramya visit the five Thai nationals who were released by Hamas on Thursday after 15 months in captivity.

The five, Pongsak Thenna, Sathian Suwannakham, Watchara Sriaoun, Bannawat Seathao and Surasak Lamnau, are being treated at the Shamir Medical Center.

During the meeting, the freed hostages also spoke by video conference with Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

“The Prime Minister conveyed her best wishes to our nationals, and instructed our teams at the Royal Thai Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to continue coordinating closely with the relevant officials to ensure all five nationals undergo the relevant health checkups and can return home promptly and safely to their families in Thailand,” says Sangiampongsa in a post on X.

During my visit to Shamir Medical Center, I was delighted to meet all five of our Thai nationals and attend an online meeting with PM @ingshin, during which we were pleased to be informed that they are in good mental and physical condition. The Prime Minister conveyed her best… pic.twitter.com/ugAXdie3zf

— Maris Sangiampongsa (@AmbPoohMaris) February 1, 2025

Bibas family asks public to help ‘protect Yarden’s soul’ as he returns to ‘unbearable reality’ without wife, sons

Hamas gunmen flank Israeli hostage Yarden Bibas on a stage before handing him over to a Red Cross team in Khan Yunis on February 1, 2025, as part of a hostage-ceasefire deal. (Eyad BABA / AFP)

The Bibas family issues an emotional statement after the return of hostage Yarden Bibas from Hamas captivity without his wife Shiri and two sons Ariel And Kfir.

“Yarden is home. A quarter of our heart has returned to us after 15 long months. There are no words to describe the relief of holding Yarden in our hands, embracing him, and hearing his voice. Yarden has returned home, but the home remains incomplete,” the statement says.

“Yarden is a father who left his safe room to protect his family, bravely survived captivity and returned to an unbearable reality,” it says.

At this time, we ask: Protect Yarden, Protect his soul. Please respect his privacy and give him the space he needs so that his body and soul can begin to recover,” the statement says.

Hamas has claimed that Shiri and the boys were killed in Gaza, but Israel has had no definite proof and has demanded information from Hamas through the mediators.

Yifat Zailer shows photos of her cousin, Shiri Bibas, center, her husband Yarden, left, and their sons Ariel, top right, and Kfir, who were taken hostage by Hamas terrorists, at her home in Herzliya, January 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

The Bibas family also thanks the people of Israel and the soldiers of the IDF.

“We will take a few days to reunite with Yarden, but we continue with hope and the call for the return of Shiri, the children and all the hostages. Please continue to make their voices heard and emphasize the urgency of their return.”

IDF launches interceptors near Gaza border after ‘false identification’

Interceptor missiles were launched a short while ago at a suspicious target near the Gaza border community of Nirim.

The IDF says that the target was determined to have been a “false identification,” meaning not a threat.

Palestinians celebrate as three busloads of prisoners arrive in Gaza

Freed Palestinian security prisoners are greeted by a crowd as they arrive in the Gaza Strip after being released from an Israeli prison following a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel in Khan Younis, February 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Three buses carrying Palestinian prisoners released by Israel as part of a ceasefire deal arrive in the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.

The prisoners, many wearing gray prison uniforms, are greeted by hundreds of Gazans who gathered around the buses as they approached the city’s European Hospital.

The prisoners were to undergo medical checks at the hospital before heading to their homes.

“In blood and spirit, we shall redeem you, prisoner!” chant some in the crowd as the men left the buses one by one.

Some prisoners stuck their heads out of the windows of the vehicles as they tried to spot relatives or talk to people they knew in the crowd.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club in Ramallah, 150 of the 183 detainees released on Saturday as part of the truce between Israel and Hamas were to be transferred to Gaza.

“This is a new day of victory for our people. Today, a new group of our heroes is being released, seeing freedom despite the occupation’s will,” a Hamas official who did not wish to be identified tells  AFP.

Crowds in Khan Younis warmly receive prisoners from Gaza who were released today as part of the fourth prisoner exchange with the Israeli occupation. pic.twitter.com/RDcX7ieNfI

— V PALESTINE ???????? (@V_Palestine20) February 1, 2025

Israel demands ‘information’ from mediators on Bibas family after father’s release

Gal Hirsch, Israel's hostage coordinator, gives a statement after the release of three Israeli hostages (Screen grab)

Israel demands information from mediators who brokered a ceasefire in Gaza over the fate of Shir, Ariel and Kfir Bibas after the release of  Yarden Bibas.

“The Bibas family… has been living in constant fear for their lives for a long time… We continue to demand information about their condition from the mediators,” says Gal Hirsch, Israel’s hostage coordinator, in a statement, referring to Bibas’s wife and two children who remain in Gaza.

Arab foreign ministers reject transferring Palestinians out of Gaza ‘under any circumstances’

Demonstrators gather outside the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip on January 31, 2025 to protest against a plan floated by US President Donald Trump to move Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and Jordan. (Photo by Kerolos Salah / AFP)

Arab foreign ministers reject the transfer of Palestinians from their land “under any circumstances or justifications,” presenting a unified stance against US President Donald Trump’s call for Egypt and Jordan to take in residents of the Gaza Strip.

In a joint statement following a meeting in Cairo, the foreign ministers and officials from Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia Qatar, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League says they were looking forward to working with Trump’s administration to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East, based on a two-state solution.

Hundreds cheer in Hostage Square as helicopter carrying Keith Siegel passes overhead

Israelis watch the release of three hostages from Hamas captivity as part of a deal between Israel and Hamas, at Hostage square in Tel Aviv, February 1, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Hundreds of people in Hostage Square in Tel Aviv cheer as the IDF helicopter carrying Keith Siegel passes overhead.

Siegel is taken to the nearby Ichilov hospital.

Siegel, wrapped in an Israeli flag, can be seen disembarking from the helicopter and refusing a waiting wheelchair.

המסוק של קית׳ סיגל עובר מעל כיכר החטופים בדרכו לבית החולים איכילוב. לפעמים חלומות מתגשמים ????️❤️‍???? pic.twitter.com/ox1ZuI8X6f

— Gil Dickmann | גיל דיקמן (@gildickmann) February 1, 2025

‎‏”The medical teams and professionals at the hospital are fully prepared to receive him and provide comprehensive medical care, including psychological support and addressing any additional needs,” the Health Ministry says in a statement.

American-Israeli Keith Siegel, who has been held hostage by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, 2023, arrives at the Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025.(Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Images show Yarden Bibas reuniting with his mother

Yarden Bibas embraces his mother Pnina at the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel on February 1 2025 (Israel Defense Force)

Images show released hostage Yarden Bibas reuniting with him mother at Sheba Medical Center in central Israel.

His mother Pnina wraps him in a tight embrace.

Bibas earlier met his father and sister.

Netanyahu welcomes hostages home: ‘Our thoughts remain with Shiri, Ariel and Kfir’

Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas (Courtesy)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomes home the three released Israeli hostages and vows to bring the rest back.

“Welcome back home Yarden Bibas, Ofer Calderon and Keith Siegel,” Netanyahu writes in a post on X.

“Together will all citizens of Israel and many around the world, my wife and I embrace you on your return home,” he says.

“Our thoughts remain with Shiri, Ariel and Kfir and all the hostages. We will continue to act to bring them all home,” Netanyahu says referring to Bibas’s wife and two small children.

Keith Siegel is being airlifted to hospital in central Israel

Released hostage Keith Siegel is handed over to IDF troops in the Gaza Strip on February, 21, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)

Released hostage Keith Siegel is being airlifted by an Israeli Air Force helicopter from an army facility near the Gaza border to a hospital in central Israel.

He will meet the rest of his family and receive medical care there.

US embassy welcomes release of Keith Siegel, other hostages

The US Embassy in Jerusalem welcomes the release of Keith Siegel, an American-Israeli citizen, from Hamas captivity.

“Today I join Aviva, her children, grandchildren and the entire Siegel family in breathing a huge sigh of relief that fellow American Keith is finally home after 484 agonizing days in Hamas captivity,” writes Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Stephanie Hallett.

“I’m elated to see Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas also released today. We won’t rest until all the hostages come home,” she says.

Today I join Aviva, her children, grandchildren, and the entire Siegel family in breathing a huge sigh of relief that fellow American Keith is finally home after 484 agonizing days in Hamas captivity.????️❤️ ???????? ????????

I’m elated to see Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas also released…

— Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Stephanie Hallett (@USAmbIsrael) February 1, 2025

Footage shows Keith Siegel being handed over to IDF troops

Footage published by the military shows the moment released hostage Keith Siegel was handed over to IDF troops in the Gaza Strip by the Red Cross.

Siegel has since been brought to an IDF facility near the border to undergo an initial medical assessment and meet members of his family.

Yarden Bibas thanks Israeli public for their support as he is helicoptered to hospital

Yarden Bibas, flanked by his sister and father, is seen on an IDF helicopter on his way to a hospital in central Israel on February 1, 2025 (Israel Defense Force)

Footage shows Yarden Bibas on the helicopter flight from the IDF base near the Gaza Strip to the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel.

Bibas, whose wife and two small children are still held in Gaza amid deep fears for their fate, holds up a sign thanking the people of Israel for their support.

He holds up a board with a message that reads: “I thank all the people of Israel for their support and help. I heard from my family that you fought for me.”

“I want to say thank you very much. I appreciate it very much. It is not taken for granted,” he writes, adding  “Happy birthday, Grandpa.”

He is accompanied on the flight by his father and sister.

His mother, who is waiting at the hospital to be reunited with him, tells Channel 12:  “Now we have one, we are waiting for the other three.”

Tears of joy as Ofer Calderon reunited with his children

Released hostage Ofer Calderon reunites with his children Rotem, Gaya, Erez and Sahar on February 1, 2025. Erez and Sahar were also abducted on October 7, 2023 and were freed in November 2023. (Ma'ayon Taof / GPO)

Video shows the emotional release as Ofer Calderon is reunited with his four children Erez, Sahar,  Rotem and Gaya at the Sheba Medical Center.

Tears and laughter mingle as they meet and embrace each other.

Two of the children, Erez and Sahar, were taken hostage along with Ofer and released in November, forced to leave their father behind in Gaza captivity.

“We are okay dad, we are all okay,” one of them can be heard telling him.”

Additional footage is released of him reuniting with his brother Nissim, who has been a prominent activist fighting for the release of Ofer and the other hostages.

Prison services says 183 Palestinian security prisoners released

A Palestinian security prisoner released by Israel is greeted by a relative upon his arrival in Ramallah on buses of the International Committee of the Red Cross on February 1, 2025. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

The Israel Prison Service says it has completed the release of 183 Palestinian prisoners.

It says some of the prisoners were transferred from the Ofer prison to the West Bank, while the rest were sent from the Ketziot prison to the Gaza Strip.

Smiling Ofer Calderon seen in helicopter trip to hospital

Freed hostage Ofer Calderon in an IDF helicopter en route to Sheba Medical Center after his release from Hamas captivity in Gaza, February 1, 2025 (IDF)

The IDF releases footage of released hostage Ofer Calderon on the helicopter trip from the Gaza border to a hospital in central Israel.

Calderon is seen smiling and holds up a heart sign.

Rafah crossing from Gaza to Egypt reopens, as wounded Palestinians exit

Wounded Palestinians and caregivers sit on a bus as they prepare to cross through the Rafah crossing into Egypt, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

The Rafah border crossing, the main entry and exit point for the Gaza Strip, reopens for the first time since May 2024 to allow Palestinian patients to cross over from Gaza to Egypt to receive medical treatment, live television footage shows.

The Hams-run Gaza health ministry says 50 sick and wounded children and 61 companions are the first to cross.

Some 50 wounded Hamas operatives are also expected to cross as part of the hostage-ceasefire deal.

Herzog welcomes return of 3 hostages, expresses deep concern for fate of Yarden Bibas’s family

The Bibas family, father Yarden, mother Shiri, baby Kfir and four-year-old Ariel, were taken captive by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 from Kibbutz Nir Oz. (Courtesy)

President Isaac Herzog welcomes the release of the three Israeli hostages, but expresses deep concern for the fate of Yarden Bibas’s wife and two small children who remain in Hamas captivity.

“Yarden Bibas, Ofer Calderon and Keith Siegel are finally home. How we have worried, and awaited their return,” says Herzog in a post on X.

“Yarden’s reunion with his family is simply heartbreaking. We all remain deeply concerned for the fate of our beloved Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas — as an entire nation we hold them in our hearts. The people of Israel stand by Yarden and the whole family, with great concern and in heartfelt prayer,” Herzog says.

“Ofer’s children, Erez and Sahar, were returned to their loving mother, the courageous Hadas, and the rest of their family during the first exchange. Erez marked his Bar Mitzvah and read from the Torah just a few months ago – while his father was still held in Gaza,” Herzog writes.

“Keith’s heroic wife Aviva, was also returned in the first exchange to their four children and five grandchildren. Since then, we have seen Aviva speak out in countless meetings around the world, crying out and working unwaveringly for Keith’s return,” Herzog says.

“Each one deserves the time to rehabilitate and rebuild their lives, and every one of the hostages deserves to come home soon. We will not rest nor be silent until we return all our sisters and brothers from the hell of captivity in Gaza – until the last one!”

‘Indescribable excitement’: Siegel family celebrates release of Keith

Aviva and Shai Siegel react as they watch their husband and father Keith Siegel released from Hamas captivity on February 1, 2025 (Screencapture/Israel Defense Forces)

The family of released hostage Keith Siegel celebrates his release saying they were filled with “indescribable excitement” as he came back to Israel.

“At this very moment, our father is setting foot on the soil of the Land of Israel, and we are filled with indescribable excitement,” says a statement released by the Hostage Families Forum on behalf of the family.

“Finally, after 484 long, terrifying days and nights, full of immense worry for our father, we can breathe again,” they say offering thanks to the Israeli and US governments.

“Thank you, President Trump, for bringing our father back to us. There are now 79 hostages who are also waiting to be reunited with their loved ones. Our hope rests with you,” the says.

Siegel is a dual US-Israeli citizen.

“As citizens, it is our duty to ensure that all the hostages return — those who are alive to their families for healing and rehabilitation, and those who were murdered to receive a proper burial in the land of Israel,” the family says, also thanking the IDF and security forces.

“We send our condolences to the bereaved families who have lost their most precious loved ones for the sake of us all. You will forever be in our hearts.”

IDF acknowledges senior Hamas leader was not killed in Gaza strike

Hamas fighters deploy at the stage ahead of the handover of American-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel, 65, to the Red Cross in Gaza City, Saturday Feb.1, 2025.(AP Photo/Mohammed Hajjar)

The IDF acknowledges that it did not kill the commander of Hamas’s Shati Battalion in December 2023, after Palestinian media reported that Haitham Hawajri was among those who handed over hostage Keith Siegel to the Red Cross today.

In a statement, the IDF says that after Hawajri was targeted on December 3, 2023, “it was determined with a high level of probability by the IDF and Shin Bet that he had been eliminated, following which an IDF spokesperson statement on the subject was issued.”

“After further examination, it emerged that the intelligence finding on which the Intelligence Directorate and Shin Bet relied was not correct and the terrorist was not eliminated in this strike,” the military says.

Last month, the IDF acknowledged that it did not kill the commander of Hamas’s Beit Hanoun Battalion as it had previously announced.

In October, the IDF said that a previous announcement on the elimination of the commander of Hamas’s Tel Sultan Battalion was incorrect, but he was killed in a separate strike.

Yarden Bibas arrives at hospital in central Israel

Israeli security forces extend a makeshift tunnel toward the door of a military helicopter transporting a newly-released Israeli hostage after it landed at the Sheba hospital in Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv on February 1, 2025. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP)

Released hostage Yarden Bibas, accompanied by his father and sister, arrive at the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel on an IDF helicopter.

A large crowd of supporters cheer as he is taken into the hospital.

‎‏”The medical teams and professionals at the hospital are fully prepared to receive him and provide comprehensive medical care, including psychological support and addressing any additional needs,” the Health Ministry says in a statement.

“‎‏We would like to remind the public, even more strongly than on previous occasions, that these are sensitive times for the returned captives and their families,” the statement says.

Bus with released Palestinians security prisoners leaves Ofer prison

A former Palestinian prisoner released by Israel is cheered upon his arrival in Ramallah on buses of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on February 1, 2025. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)

A bus carrying Palestinian security prisoners leaves Ofer Prison in the West Bank, as part of a Gaza ceasefire deal.

The inmates depart from the Israeli prison after three Israeli hostages were handed over by Hamas in Gaza in a fourth such exchange agreed upon under the ceasefire deal.

Footage shows them entering the nearby Palestinian city of Ramallah.

The bus is carrying some 32 prisoners for the West Bank. About 150 other prisoners were being sent to Gaza or deported.

According to Palestinian authorities, a total of 183 Palestinian prisoners are to be released, including dozens serving lengthy sentences or life sentences, and 111 people from the Gaza Strip who were arrested after Oct. 7, 2023 and held without trial.

‘He looks good!: Keith Siegel’s wife and son react with delight as they watch his release

Aviva and Shai Siegel react as they watch their husband and father Keith Siegel released from Hamas captivity on February 1, 2025 (Screencapture/Israel Defense Forces)

Keith Siegel’s family reacts with joy as they watch a video of him being released.

“Here he is, here he is,” cries his wife Aviva. “He looks good!” she says in relief and hugs their son Shai.

Siegel was taken captive with Aviva from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the Hamas-led invasion and massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Aviva was freed during a previous ceasefire in November 2023.

Video shows released hostage Yarden Bibas embraced by his father and sister

Yarden Bibas embraces his father Eli and his sister Ofri at an IDF facility near Re'im after 484 days in Hamas captivity.(Screencapture/Israel Defense Forces)

Video released shows the moments Yarden Bibas meets his father and sister at an IDF facility near Re’im after 484 days in Hamas captivity.

Yarden is seen reuniting with his father Eli and his sister Ofri.

“You are sweet, your humor stayed,” Eli is heard saying to Yarden.

Bibas’s wife Shiri and sons Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2, who were all abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, are still held in Gaza, and Israel has said it has “grave concerns” for their fate.

Bibas and members of his family are now being airlifted by an Israeli Air Force helicopter from an army facility near the Gaza border to a hospital in central Israel, the military says.

Released hostage Keith Siegel is back in Israel after 484 days in Hamas captivity

People standing next to a poster of hostage Keith Siegel react as they watch his release on a screen at hostage square in Tel Aviv on February 1, 2025. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)

Released hostage Keith Siegel has crossed the border into Israel, after 484 days in Hamas captivity, the IDF says.

Siegel was escorted out of the Gaza Strip by Israeli special forces, after being handed over to them by the Red Cross.

The IDF is bringing him to a facility near the border for an initial physical and mental checkup, and to meet with family members.

Video shows released hostages Bibas and Calderon handed over to IDF troops

A video released by the military shows the moment released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon were handed over to IDF troops in the Gaza Strip by the Red Cross.

Both have since been brought back to Israel to meet with their families, after 484 days in Hamas captivity.

‘He survived this hell’: Ofer Calderon’s family celebrate his release

A Member of Ofer Calderon's family holds a poster bearing his picture with the a note in Hebrew added on it that reads "back home", his release from captivity in the Gaza Strip on February 1, 2025, at the family home in Kfar Saba. (Photo by Sharon ARONOWICZ / AFP)

The family of Ofer Calderon says they are “overwhelmed with joy, relief and emotion” after his release by Hamas.

Calderon was kidnapped by Hamas from the Nir Oz kibbutz on October 7, along with his daughter Sahar and son Erez. The children were released in November 2023 during a temporary ceasefire.

“Today, we finally embrace Ofer, seeing and truly comprehending that he is here with us,” his family say in a statement released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters.

“We have witnessed how, through extraordinary mental strength, he survived this hell. Ofer endured months in a nightmare, and we are proud of his ability to survive and hold onto the hope of embracing his children again.”

The family added a note of support for the remaining hostages still being held by Hamas.

“In the midst of this emotional moment, we must remember all the hostages who remain behind. We have no right to stop until all 79 hostages return home — whether for rehabilitation or for burial,” the family says.

Ofer Calderon arrives at hospital in central Israel; punches the air, blows kisses to friends outside

Freed hostage Ofer Calderon raises both hands and blows kisses to friends outside the Sheba Medical Center on his return to Israel, February 1, 2025 (Eyal Hadani/AFP)

Released hostage Ofer Calderon arrives at the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel where he will meet family members and be evaluated by doctors.

Dozens of cyclists and friends from a club Calderon belongs to ride behind his vehicle, accompanying it from the helicopter to the hospital building.

Freed hostage Ofer Calderon raises both hands and blows kisses to friends outside the Sheba Medical Center on his return to Israel, February 1, 2025 (X screenshot, used in accordance with clause 27a of the copyright law)

Caldron insists the van stop so he can get out and greet his friends.

He waves clenched fists in the air and blows them kisses, as they call out to him that he’s “a champion.”

עופר קלדרון בשיבא. החברים מקבוצת הרכיבה מריעים לו pic.twitter.com/j7rR4rGr0q

— נדב אלימלך Nadav Elimelech (@NadavElimelech) February 1, 2025

“Medical teams and professionals at the hospital are fully prepared to receive him and provide comprehensive medical care, including psychological support and addressing any additional needs,” the Health Ministry says in a statement.

“We would like to remind the public, even more strongly than on previous occasions, that these are sensitive times for the returned captives and their families. We urge everyone to respect their privacy,” the ministry says.

Released hostage Keith Siegel is in hands of IDF troops in Gaza

Hamas gunmen flank Israeli-American hostage Keith Siegel before handing him over to a Red Cross team in Gaza City on February 1, 2025. (Omar Al-Qattaa / AFP)

Released hostage Keith Siegel is now in the hands of IDF troops in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas handed Siegel over to the Red Cross at the Gaza Port, and he was then taken to Israeli forces inside Gaza.

He will be brought out of the Strip to an army facility near the border community of Re’im for an initial checkup.

Hostage forum says release of three captives ‘brings ray of light’

Israelis watch the release of Keith Siegel from Hamas captivity in Gaza, at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv. (Adar Eyal / Hostages Families Forum)

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum hails the release of three hostages by Hamas, saying it “brings a ray of light” after more than 15 months of captivity in the Gaza Strip.

“Their release today brings a ray of light in the darkness, offering hope and demonstrating the triumph of the human spirit,” the forum says in a statement after captives Yarden Bibas, Keith Siegel and Ofer Calderon were freed.

Ofer Calderon helicoptered to hospital in central Israel

Released hostage Ofer Calderon is being airlifted by an Israeli Air Force helicopter from an army facility near the Gaza border to a hospital in central Israel to meet his family after 484 days in Hamas captivity.

Yarden Bibas, who was released alongside Calderon, is meeting his family at the army facility near Re’im. He will soon be taken by helicopter as well to a hospital in central Israel.

צה"ל: עופר קלדרון המריא במסוק חיל האוויר לבית החולים, שם עתיד להיפגש עם בני משפחתו@ItayBlumental @pozailov1 @ela1949 pic.twitter.com/ofQ4mxtzYq

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) February 1, 2025

Yarden Bibas meets family members at IDF facility near Gaza

Released hostage Yarden Bibas meets IDF troops in the Gaza Strip on February 1, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)

Released hostage Yarden Bibas, 35, is meeting members of his family at an IDF facility near the southern border community of Re’im after 484 days in Hamas captivity. Bibas’s wife Shiri, 34, and sons Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2, are still held hostage in Gaza, and Israel says it has “grave concerns” for their fate.

Bibas’s cousin Oriah tells Channel 12 after his release that he has lost weight and that they hopes to one day see him smile again.

“Now the time has come to continue [with the deal] until we see Shiri and the boys at home,” she says.

Ofer Calderon, who was released alongside Bibas, will meet his family at a hospital in central Israel.

Macron shares ‘joy’ of French-Israeli Ofer Calderon’s release after ‘unimaginable hell’

Israeli Ofer Calderon who has been held hostage by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, 2023, walks next to Hamas gunmen before being handed over to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday Feb. 1, 2025. Photo/Abdel Kareem)

French President Emanuel Macron shares his “joy” at the release of hostage Ofer Calderon from Gaza where he was held by Hamas in “unimaginable hell”

Calderon is a dual French-Israeli citizen.

“Ofer Calderon is free! We share the immense relief and joy of his family after 483 days of unimaginable hell,” Macron posts on X.

“Our thoughts are with Ohad Yahalomi, still in the hands of Hamas, and his family. France is doing everything in its power to secure his immediate release.”

US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegal is handed over to the Red Cross

Hamas gunmen escort American-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel on a stage before handing him over to a Red Cross team in Gaza City on February 1, 2025, as part of the fourth hostage-prisoner exchange. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegal is handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza City.

Siegal, wearing a black cap, is paraded on a stage set up in front of the sea in the Gaza City port, where he briefly waves to the crowd.

Siegal, 64, walks unaided but appears thin and pale.

The stage is decorated with images of slain Hamas military leaders and a slogan in Hebrew that says “Zionism will not win.”

Dozens of armed and masked Hamas gunmen form a cordon around the stage.

The handover is also brief and orderly compared to the scenes of chaos in the release of Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Mozes on Thursday when they were forced to march through a seething mob.

The IDF says the Red Cross has notified the military that hostage Keith Siegel was handed over to it. The Red Cross is now bringing him to IDF and Shin Bet forces inside Gaza to then be escorted out of the Strip, the military adds.

Siegel, a dual Israeli-US citizen originally from North Carolina, was taken captive with his wife Aviva from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the Hamas-led invasion and massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Aviva was freed during a previous ceasefire in November 2023.

Hamas fighters deploy at the stage where the handover of American-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel, 65, to the Red Cross will take place in Gaza City, Saturday Feb.1, 2025.(AP Photo/Mohammed Hajjar)

Red Cross vehicles arrive at site of Keith Siegel handover

Red Cross vehicles arrive at a hostage handover site set up by Hamas at the Gaza Port near Gaza City (Screencapture/YouTube)

Red Cross vehicles have arrived at a hostage handover site set up by Hamas at the Gaza Port near Gaza City.

Hamas will hand over hostage Keith Siegel to the Red Cross shortly.

Reports say top Hamas commander, originally believed killed, will hand over hostage Keith Siegel

Hamas and Islamic Jihad gunmen deploy and take up positions ahead of the release of hostages by Hamas in Gaza Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem)

Palestinian media reports say that a Hamas commander who Israel previously claimed to have killed will be among those to hand over hostage Keith Siegel to the Red Cross in a short while.

The IDF in December 2023 said it killed Haitham Hawajri, the commander of Hamas’s Shati battalion.

It would not be the first time that the IDF has announced the death of a Hamas commander and later backtracked after determining that its intelligence at the time was not accurate.

Images show released hostages Calderon and Bibas meeting IDF soldiers

Released hostage Ofer Calderon (R) meets with an IDF soldier after returning to Israel on February 1, 2025 (Israel Defense Force)

Released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon meet IDF troops in the Gaza Strip earlier this morning, images published by the military show.

Both have since been escorted out of Gaza to an army facility near the border.

Released hostage Yarden Bibas meets IDF troops in the Gaza Strip on February 1, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)

Palestinians begin arriving at Rafah crossing ahead of reopening

A man waves at his wife and child sitting in a bus as patients from al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City wait to be evacuated for treatment through the Rafah crossing on February 1, 2025. (Photo by BASHAR TALEB / AFP)

Images show Palestinians arriving at the Rafah Crossing between Gaza and Egypt, which has reopened as part of the hostage-ceasefire deal.

Video shows children and their caregivers waiting to cross into Egypt.

It will be opened initially for 50 injured terror operatives and 50 wounded civilians, along with the people escorting them, with a further 100 people, most likely students, probably allowed through on humanitarian grounds.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says 50 sick and wounded children are scheduled to be evacuated through the Rafah crossing along with 61 companions.

It had been the only exit point for Palestinians during the war before it was closed in May. A European Union civilian mission was deployed Friday to prepare for the reopening of the crossing.

For the first time in months of the Israeli siege and the closure of the Rafah border crossing, 50 Palestinian children, sick and wounded, are preparing to travel abroad for treatment. pic.twitter.com/3PzfUEBTcz

— Hassan Farah (@HassanF28182803) February 1, 2025

Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas have arrived at an IDF facility to meet family members

Family of Israeli hostage Ofer Calderon react as he is released in Kfar Saba, February 01, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon have arrived at an IDF facility near the border community of Re’im after being escorted out of the Gaza Strip by troops.

The two hostages will undergo an initial physical and mental checkup at the army site, and meet family members after 484 days in captivity.

Bibas’s wife Shiri and sons Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2, who were all abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, are still held in Gaza, and Israel has said it has “grave concerns” for their fate.

Red Cross heading to Keith Siegal release site in Gaza City

The Red Cross is now heading to a hostage handover site set up by Hamas at the port of Gaza City to collect hostage Keith Siegel, an Israeli defense official says.

Released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon are back in Israel after 484 days

Israelis watch broadcast of the release of Israelis Ofer Kalderon, 53, and Yarden Bibas, 34, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon have crossed the border into Israel, after 484 days in Hamas captivity, the IDF says.

The two were escorted out of the Gaza Strip by Israeli special forces, after being handed over to them by the Red Cross.

The IDF is bringing them to a facility near the border for an initial physical and mental checkup, and to meet with family members.

Netanyahu welcomes release of hostages Calderon and Bibas

A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office welcomes the release of hostages Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas and vows to bring home all the captives held in Gaza.

“The Israeli government embraces the two returning hostages. Their families have been informed by the relevant authorities that they are in the hands of our forces,” the statement says.

“The Israeli government is committed to the return of all the hostages and the missing.”

Released hostages Bibas and Calderon are in the hands of the IDF

A man and a woman draped in an Israeli flag watch the release by the Hamas terror group of hostages Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas in the Gaza Strip, on a screen at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, on February 1, 2025. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)

Released hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon are now in the hands of IDF troops in the Gaza Strip, the military says.

Hamas handed the two over to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, and they were then taken to Israeli forces inside Gaza.

They will be brought out of the Strip to an army facility near the border community of Re’im for an initial checkup.

Ofer Calderon’s mother: We are waiting to give him a big hug

Hostage Ofer Calderon on a stage set up by the Hamas terror group in Khan Younis on February 1, 2025 (Screen grab/YouTube)

Kochi Caldeon, the mother of released hostage Ofer Calderon, reacts to the scenes of her son being released.

“We are watching and very emotional,” she tells Channel 12 news while watching the live images of his handover. “Finally we see him.”

“He looks more or less OK, a bit thin, a bit pale, he probably has not seen the sun for a long time,” she says.

“We are waiting to give him a very big hug.”

IDF says Red Cross has confirmed it has Calderon and Bibas

Red Cross representatives speak with members of the Hamas terror group at a hostage handover in Khan Younis on February 1, 2025 (Screen grab/YouTube)

The IDF says the Red Cross has notified the military that hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon were handed over to it.

The Red Cross is now bringing them to IDF and Shin Bet forces inside Gaza to then be escorted out of the Strip, the military adds.

Hostage Yarden Bibas is handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza

Hostage Yarden Bibas on a stage set up by the Hamas terror group in Khan Younis on February 1, 2025 (Screen grab/YouTube)

Hostage Yarden Bibas is handed over to the Red Cross by Hamas after 484 days in captivity.

Bibas is seen paraded on a stage in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis. He briefly waves to the crowd before leaving in a Red Cross vehicle.

Bibas is freed while his wife Shiri and children Ariel and Kfir remain in captivity, with grave fears for their fate.

The handover is quick and orderly compared to the chaotic scenes that were seen in the handover on Thursday of Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Mozes.

Hostage Ofer Calderon is handed over to the Red Cross

Hostage Ofer Calderon on a stage set up by the Hamas terror group in Khan Younis on February 1, 2025 (Screen grab/YouTube)

Hostage Ofer Calderon is handed over to the Red Cross by Hamas after 484 days in captivity.

Calderon is seen paraded on a stage in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis. He briefly waves to the crowd before leaving in a Red Cross vehicle.

Calderon is dressed in olive clothes like the hostages who were released in recent days.

He appears to be in relatively good health.

He is made to stand in front of a poster showing slain Hamas leaders including Muhammed Deif, the military leader that Hamas acknowledged his death this week.

The ceremony is brief and carefully stage-managed by Hamas, without the large crowds and protracted handover that marked Thursday’s release of Arbel Yehoud and Gadi Mozes. After that chaotic event, Israel insisted on guarantees from the mediators that future handovers would be calm.

Red Cross vehicles arrive in south Gaza’s Khan Younis for hostage handover

Red Cross vehicles have arrived at a hostage handover site set up by Hamas in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis.

Yarden Bibas and Ofer Calderon being freed today will be handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross here, while Keith Siegel will be released at another site set up by Hamas at the port of Gaza City.

Hostage release expected to begin from 8:30 a.m., Israeli official says

The scene of an expected hostage release in Gaza on February 1, 2025 (Screen grab/Al Arabiya)

A security official says that the release of three Israeli hostages is expected to get underway from 8:30 a.m.

The three slated for release by Hamas are Ofer Calderon, 54, Keith Siegel, 65, and Yarden Bibas, 35.

They are expected to be released from two separate locations in the Gaza Strip.

The official stresses that the timings could change.

Footage from Gaza shows the Hamas terror group setting up stages in Khan Younis and the Gaza port areas.

3 men stabbed, seriously injured in Tel Aviv brawl

Three men were stabbed and seriously injured in Tel Aviv in the early hours of the morning, medics say.

While the Magen David Adom service says the incident took place on Dizengoff Street, police say it occurred on Ibn Gvirol.

The three men aged in their 20s were taken to the city’s Ichilov hospital for treatment.

Police say that the men were stabbed during a fight and that three men were arrested in connection with the incident. It is unclear if any of the injured men are suspects.

‘Syrian Resistance’ group claims responsibility for firing at IDF troops in buffer zone

IDF soldiers are seen at a former Syrian Army post at Tel Kwdana, Syria, December 11, 2024. (Emanuel Fabian/Times of Israel)

The “Syrian Resistance,” an organization affiliated with the former regime in Syria, claims responsibility for firing at Israel Defense Forces troops in the buffer zone last night, a Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese outlet reports.

The group announces it “has begun its operations against the Israeli enemy alongside operations against al-Julani’s terrorist gangs,” using the nom de guerre of new Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.

According to the Al-Akhbar outlet, the group also says “the Syrian Resistance will not allow Israel to occupy our land. We will ambush it and al-Julani’s gangs with precise ambushes and surprise attacks.”

The IDF said last night that soldiers had returned fire at the source of the shooting, and that there were no Israeli injuries.

It marked the first such incident since Israeli forces deployed to the buffer zone on the border between Israel and Syria, following the fall of the Assad regime last month.

Police say officers shot suspects who fired at them in Kafr Qara

Police say a pair of suspects opened fire on officers in Kafr Qara, before themselves being shot.

The suspects were firing at a home in the Arab town when they were confronted by police, who they shot at. The officers then shot the two, killing one and and wounding the other, who was taken to a hospital for medical treatment.

No injuries are reported among the officers.

Small medevac plane crashes in Philadelphia with child, 5 others on board

A medevac plane has crashed in Philadelphia with a child and five others on board, the air ambulance company that operated it says, adding that it has not confirmed any survivors.

Jet Rescue Air Ambulance says its aircraft crashed with four crew members, one pediatric medical patient and the patient’s escort on board.

“At this time we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company says in a statement.

US President Donald Trump writes on social media that it was “so sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job.”

The crash follows this week’s collision of an American Airlines jet and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington, DC, which killed 67 in the deadliest airplane crash in the US since 2009.

The Federal Aviation Administration says six people were on the Learjet 55 that crashed around 6:30 p.m. local time. Local media reports it was near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia and that there were multiple injuries on the ground.

Video aired on local TV stations shows the plane in a sharp dive before slamming into the ground in a heavily populated area of northeast Philadelphia and exploding in a massive fireball.

At least one house and multiple cars were on fire, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The weather was cold and rainy and with low visibility at the time of the crash.

The air ambulance had left Northeast Philadelphia Airport and was headed to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, about 1,100 miles (1,800 km) to the southwest, the FAA says in a statement.

Trump administration may lift hold on delivery of assault rifles to Israel — NYT

The Trump administration is looking at lifting a hold on the delivery of 24,000 assault rifles to Israel that was issued by former US secretary of State Antony Blinken, the New York Times reports, citing an American official.

The newspaper says the State Deportment didn’t reply to a request on whether the US will lift the hold, which Blinken put in place over concerns that then-national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir was using them to arm settlers in the West Bank.

U of Michigan suspends Students for Justice in Palestine’s local chapter for 2 years

This photo provided by Sarah Hubbard shows anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian protesters in Okemos, Michigan, demonstrating outside the home of Sarah Hubbard, the chair of the University of Michigan's governing board, on May 15, 2024 (Sarah Hubbard via AP)

A pro-Palestinian group at the University of Michigan has been suspended for two years and will lose its funding in connection with protesters’ demands for divestiture from companies doing business with Israel.

Students Allied for Freedom and Equality, also known as SAFE, was accused of violating the university’s standards of conduct for recognized student organizations following a protest last spring outside a regent’s home and a demonstration without school permission on its Ann Arbor campus.

Tensions over the Israel-Hamas war led to emotional demonstrations on US campuses, including a wave of pro-Palestinian tent encampments that led to about 3,200 arrests.

The war was sparked by an October 7, 2023, attack on Israel in which Hamas-led terrorists killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for aggressive action to fight antisemitism on college campuses and promising to prosecute offenders and revoke visas for international students found to be “Hamas sympathizers.”

The University of Michigan’s sanctions against SAFE were handed down nearly two weeks earlier, on January 16. The group also is prohibited from reserving university spaces. It has until next Thursday to appeal.

The suspension could be lifted earlier than two years if the group satisfies all the sanctions against it and meets with school officials to discuss the university’s decision and the awareness of policies for student organizations. However, that could occur no sooner than winter 2026.

The Associated Press left several email messages seeking comment with SAFE and with its national umbrella organization, Students for Justice in Palestine, on Friday.

Rubio discusses ‘path forward in Gaza’ during call with Saudi FM

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed “the path forward in Gaza” in a call with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud, the State Department says.

The pair also talked about “ways to advance shared interests in Syria, Lebanon, and across the region, to include Red Sea security and freedom of navigation,” according to the State Department readout, which adds that Rubio “said he looked forward to strengthening the US-Saudi partnership.”

IDF troops operating in Syria buffer zone come under fire; none injured

IDF troops operating in a buffer zone in southern Syria came under fire a short while ago, the military says.

The IDF says soldiers returned fire at the source of the shooting.

There are no injuries, the military adds.

It marks the first such incident since Israeli forces deployed to the buffer zone on the border between Israel and Syria, following the fall of the Assad regime last month.