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The Times of Israel liveblogged Friday’s events as they happened.
Report: ICC prosecutor Karim Khan will be the first person hit with US sanctions on war crimes tribunal
International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during a press conference at the San Carlos Palace in Bogota, Colombia, April 25, 2024. (Luis Acosta / AFP)
THE HAGUE – International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan is the first person to be hit with economic and travel sanctions authorized by US President Donald Trump that target the war crimes tribunal over investigations of US citizens or US allies, two sources briefed on the matter tell Reuters.
Khan was named today in an annex – not yet made public – to an executive order signed by Trump a day earlier, a senior ICC official and another source, both briefed by US government officials, tell Reuters. They speak on condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential matter.
The sanctions include the freezing of US assets of those designated and barring them and their families from visiting the United States.
The order directs US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in consultation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to submit a report within 60 days naming people who should be sanctioned.
Under an agreement between the United Nations and Washington, Khan should be able to travel regularly to New York to brief the UN Security Council on cases it had referred to the court in The Hague. The Security Council has referred the situations in Libya and Sudan’s Darfur region to the ICC.
“We trust that any restrictions taken against individuals would be implemented consistently with the host country’s obligations under the UN Headquarters agreement,” deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq says.
Khan was most recently in New York last week to brief the Security Council on Sudan.
“International criminal law is an essential element to fighting impunity, which is unfortunately widespread,” Haq says. “The International Criminal Court is its essential element, and it must be allowed to work in full independence.”
Trump’s move this week – repeating action he took during his first term – coincided with a visit to Washington by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who – along with his former defense minister – is wanted by the ICC over the war in Gaza.
Netanyahu to leave Washington DC on Saturday night to return to Israel after 6-day trip
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives for meetings at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on February 6, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/AFP)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his entourage will leave Washington DC, on Saturday night to return to Israel on Wing of Zion.
His six-day trip saw him meet with US President Donald Trump and the senior members of the new administration.
As he almost always does on foreign trips, Netanyahu extended his stay to remain abroad over Shabbat, during which three more hostages will be released from captivity in Gaza.
US State Department signs off on $7.4 billion arms sale to Israel
The United States announces the approval of a more than $7.4 billion sale of bombs, missiles and related equipment to Israel.
The State Department has signed off on the sale of $6.75 billion in bombs, guidance kits and fuzes, in addition to $660 million in Hellfire missiles, according to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
A source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel in January that then-US president Joe Biden’s administration had informally notified Congress of the proposed arms deal, which includes munitions for fighter jets and attack helicopters alongside artillery shells.
Freed hostage Keith Siegel’s sister: We kept his captivity from our mother until she passed in December
Released hostage Keith Siegel reunites with his family at Tel Aviv's Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital) on February 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
The sister of Keith Siegel, who was released from Hamas captivity in Gaza last week after 484 days in captivity, says she kept her brother’s captivity a secret from their mother, who died in December at age 97.
“During this whole period, my job was to make sure she didn’t know he was in captivity. I did everything I could so that she wouldn’t know. I thought about it every morning, all day, and when I went to bed. She mustn’t know,” Lucy Siegel says in an interview with i24 news.
“Keith will always be the baby of the family, he was given special treatment because he is the youngest of four siblings,” she says.
Keith and his wife Aviva were kidnapped from their home on Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists attacked their community of 1,000 people, killing 62 and kidnapping 19 to Gaza. Aviva was released in a week-long ceasefire in November 2023.
Israeli negotiating team ‘most likely’ heading to Doha tomorrow for talks on 2nd stage of Gaza deal — source
The Israeli negotiating team will “most likely” be heading to Doha tomorrow to discuss the continuation of the hostage release deal with Hamas, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s entourage tells The Times of Israel.
The team will be a working-level delegation.
Efforts to forge a path to the second stage of the deal began this week in Washington, as Netanyahu met with top Trump administration officials handling the issue.
IDF: Hezbollah commander, family killed in southern Lebanon when bomb intended for terror attack detonated
A Hezbollah field commander was killed in southern Lebanon this morning when an explosive device intended for a terror attack detonated, according to the Israeli military.
The IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee says in a post on X that the explosion killed the Hezbollah commander, Abbas Haidar, along with his family, in the Tyre area.
“I remind the Lebanese people that Hezbollah weaponry is a double-edged sword and risks, first and foremost, the Lebanese population and even the Hezbollah environment itself. Stay away from Hezbollah weapons!”
#عاجل 🔸فقط للتوضيح: حسب المعلومات المتوفرة في جيش الدفاع فان الانفجار الذي وقع صباح اليوم في منطقة طير حرفا في جنوب لبنان ناجم عن انفجار عبوة ناسفة لحزب الله.
🔸نتيجة الانفجار قتل المدعو عباس حيدر وهو قائد ميداني في حزب الله حيث كانت العبوة الناسفة مخصصة لتنفيذ اعتداء إرهابي… pic.twitter.com/XK2aITnlZ2
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) February 7, 2025
Calderon family eats Shabbat dinner together at home for first time since Oct. 7
One of Ofer Calderon’s four children, Gaya, shares a photo of the family eating Shabbat dinner together at home for the first time since her father and two of her siblings were kidnapped from their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023.
Ofer was released last week as part of an ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas, while Sahar and Erez, then aged 16 and 12, were freed during a week-long truce in November 2023.
“Finally, Friday night dinners without sorrow,” Gaya Calderon writes in an Instagram post.
משפחת קלדרון חוגגת ארוחת שישי ביתית ראשונה
עם עופר מאז שובו מהשבי 💙💙💙בתו גאיה: ״סוף סוף ארוחת שישי בלי עצב״
מאחל לכם המון אושר, שמחות ורק טוב
🙏🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/1cREayXO7X— הדר סגל Hadar Segal 🇮🇱 (@hadarse) February 7, 2025
Prison Service prepping for release of next round of Palestinian prisoners tomorrow in hostage deal
Israeli security forces stand guard as buses transporting Palestinian prisoners being released as part of a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group leave the Ketziot prison in the Negev desert on January 25, 2025. (Gil Magen-Cohen/AFP)
The Israel Prison Service is preparing to release the next round of Palestinian security prisoners as part of the ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas.
“The Prison Service has received the list of security prisoners expected to be released from various prisons as part of Operation ‘Wings of Freedom’ to return the hostages home,” says an IPS statement.
The prisoners will be transported by the prison service’s Nahshon unit from the Ofer Prison, located in the West Bank, and the Keziot Prison in the Negev.
Hamas has said Israel will release 183 Palestinian prisoners tomorrow, including 18 who have been serving life sentences, in exchange for the release of three hostages — Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levy and Eli Sharabi.
All three have been held in Gaza since October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists burst across the border, killing some 1,200 people and seizing 251 hostages.
The Palestinian prisoners will be identified by Red Cross representatives and only released after the Israeli hostages are freed from Gaza, as in the previous rounds since the ceasefire came into effect in January.
The prisoners will be released to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, according to the IPS statement.
‘Finally, my heart will be whole’: Ohad Ben Ami’s family celebrate news he’ll be freed from Gaza captivity tomorrow
The family of Ohad Ben Ami, who is slated to be released from Hamas captivity in Gaza tomorrow, posts emotional footage of the moments they received the news.
“Finally, my heart will be whole,” one of his daughters writes in a post sharing a video of the family on social media.
Ben Ami, 56, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7, when thousands of Hamas terrorists rampaged southern Israeli communities, killing some 1,200 people and seizing 251 to Gaza.
His wife Raz Ben Ami was also abducted, and released as part of a week-long ceasefire in November 2023.
משפחת בן עמי מתבשרת שאוהד ברשימת המשתחררים למחר pic.twitter.com/xzjJPKlVkw
— ישראל היום (@IsraelHayomHeb) February 7, 2025
התגובה הראשונית של משפחת בן עמי ❤️🎗️ pic.twitter.com/G5yw7S6y5y
— ש𝕏ולי 🎗️🏳️🌈 Sh𝕏uLi (@Shaulirena) February 7, 2025
Freed hostage Yarden Bibas to Netanyahu: ‘Bring my family back. Bring my friends back. Bring everyone home’
Former Hamas hostage Yarden Bibas, days after he was released from captivity in Gaza on February 1, 2025. (Hostage Families Forum)
Yarden Bibas, who was released from Gaza last week as part of a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group, makes his first public statements since his release:
“On October 7th, 2023, I was kidnapped from Israel. On February 1st, 2025, I returned to a different country. I knew that the people of Israel unite in times of disaster, but I never knew to what extent,” he writes in a statement distributed by the Hostages Families Forum.
Thanking everyone who supported him and his family during his 485 days in captivity, he makes a special mention of Israeli troops: “To the IDF soldiers, in one sentence — you are heroes, each and every one of you. Thank you.”
Bibas was kidnapped separately from his wife Shiri and young sons Ariel and Kfir, when Hamas terrorists raided their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, after he left their safe room hoping to distract the gunmen and save his family.
Yarden, Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas (Courtesy)
In November 2023, Hamas claimed that Shiri and the two boys had been killed in captivity. Israel has not confirmed the claim, but has expressed “grave concern” for their fate. Though the three are set for release under the current ceasefire, Hamas has so far refused Israeli demands to comment on their status.
“Sadly, my family hasn’t returned to me yet. They are still there. My light is still there, and as long as they’re there, everything here is dark. Thanks to you, I was brought back — help me bring the light back to my life,” he says.
He specifically addresses Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “Bring my family back. Bring my friends back. Bring everyone home.”
Brother of hostage Or Levy, slated for release from Gaza tomorrow, tells his 3-year-old nephew: ‘We found Dad’
Almog, left, Or and Eynav Levy prior to October 7, 2023 when Eynav was killed and Or taken hostage by Hamas terrorists (Courtesy)
The brother of Or Levy, who is set to be released from Gaza tomorrow after 492 days in Hamas captivity, tells his three-year-old nephew Almog: “Mogi, we found Dad.”
Michael Levy’s celebratory social media post comes after Israel accepted the names of three hostages to be released tomorrow as part of an ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal with the Palestinian terror group.
Levy’s wife and Almog’s mother, Eynav, was murdered by Hamas terrorists at the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im on October 7, 2023.
His mother, Geula Levy, tells Channel 13 following the announcement of her son’s imminent release: “My heart feels like it’s about to jump out of my chest. I am very excited, especially for Or’s son Almog. Almog knows that his father will be released tomorrow. He said, “Dad is coming back” and jumped on the bed with joy.”
ICC president says US sanctions ‘serious attacks’ on global law-based order
File: Judge Tomoko Akane arrives prior to the announcement of the International Criminal Court (ICC) verdict that sentenced Malian Jihadist police chief Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud to 10 years in jail for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during a reign of terror in the fabled Malian city of Timbuktu, on November 20, 2024 at the court in The Hague, the Netherlands. (Eva Plevier / various sources / AFP)
The president of the International Criminal Court hits out at the announced US sanctions against her institution, describing them as “serious attacks” against the global law-based order.
US President Donald Trump’s order against the court was “the latest in a series of unprecedented and escalatory attacks aiming to undermine the Court’s ability to administer justice,” Tomoko Akane says in a statement.
“Such threats and coercive measures constitute serious attacks against the Court’s States Parties, the rule of law-based international order and millions of victims,” she adds.
“We firmly reject any attempt to influence the independence and the impartiality of the Court or to politicize our judicial function,” says Akane.
She says she had noted with “deep regret” Trump’s order and stresses that the ICC is “indispensable” given the atrocities being committed around the world.
Trump says he’s in ‘no rush’ to implement plan to take over, redevelop Gaza
US President Donald Trump looks on during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 7, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP)
US President Donald Trump says he’s in no rush to implement his plan to take over and redevelop Gaza.
“We’re in no rush on it,” Trump tells reporters at the White House.
After repeatedly floating the idea that Egypt and Jordan take in some Gazan refugees while the Strip was being rebuilt — an idea rejected by Cairo and Amman — Trump earlier this week suggested that “the US will take over the Gaza Strip,” while the enclave’s residents should be resettled in other countries.
Though the international community, including allies of Washington and Jerusalem, has largely criticized Trump’s plan, the US president says,” It’s been very well received, basically, the United States would view it as a real estate transaction where we will be an investor in that part of the world.”
Hamas: Israel to free 183 Palestinian security prisoners in exchange for release of 3 hostages tomorrow
Military vehicles are lined up at the Israeli Ofer prison in the West Bank, Feb. 1, 2025, awaiting the release of Palestinian prisoners as part of a swap for Israelis held hostage in Gaza. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
The Hamas prisoners’ media office says Israel is expected to free 183 Palestinians in exchange for the release of three hostages, including 18 who have been serving life sentences, 54 serving long sentences and 111 who were detained in the Gaza Strip during the war.
Earlier the Palestinian terror group accused Israel of breaching their ceasefire accord and held off announcing the names of the three Israelis until a 4 p.m. deadline had passed.
It is not immediately clear whether the delay will affect the timing of the scheduled exchange.
Hamas accused Israel of delaying the entry of hundreds of trucks carrying food and other humanitarian supplies agreed under the truce deal that took effect on January 19, and holding back all but a fraction of the tents and mobile homes needed to provide shelter to people returning to their bombed-out homes.
“This demonstrates clear manipulation of relief and shelter priorities,” Hamas claims in a statement.
COGAT, the Defense Ministry body that is overseeing the aid deliveries into Gaza, denied the accusation and warned that Israel will “not tolerate violations by Hamas.”
In total, Israel has said it will release up to 1,904 Palestinian prisoners — including 737 serving life terms for dozens of murders — in return for 33 Israeli hostages during the first phase of the ceasefire deal with Hamas.
Hostages Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami slated for release from Gaza tomorrow
Hamas hostages (L-R) Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levi, Eli Sharabi, set to be released from in Gaza on February 8, 2025 after 491 days in Hamas captivity. (Courtesy)
The Prime Minister’s Office and the Hostages Families Forum both confirm that the hostages to be released from Gaza tomorrow are Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami.
Hamas conveyed the names a short time ago, and the families have been updated.
Sharabi, 52, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Beeri when Hamas terrorists rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, 2023. His wife and daughters were murdered in their home’s safe room and he and his brother Yossi were taken captive. Yossi has since been confirmed dead and Hamas is holding his body.
Levy, 34, was kidnapped from the Supernova rave near Kibbutz Re’im on October 7. His wife Eynav was killed, and their now three-year-old son Almog has been staying with his grandparents since.
Ben Ami, 56, was also kidnapped from Be’eri. His wife Raz Ben Ami was also kidnapped, and released as part of a week-long ceasefire in November 2023.
“We have both a sacred duty and moral right to bring all our brothers and sisters home. We will not give up or stop at any stage until all hostages return home under the current agreement — down to the very last one — the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial,” the Hostages Forum says in a statement.
IDF plan requested by Katz said to suggest transporting Gazans who want to leave via Ramon airport, Ashdod port
Ramon Airport during the official opening ceremony, January 21, 2019. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
A draft plan reportedly presented to Defense Minister Israel Katz yesterday on how to implement US President Donald Trump’s controversial proposal to relocate Gazans from the Strip suggests transporting Palestinians via an airport in southern Israel or the Ashdod seaport.
Bloomberg cites an Israel official as saying that the plan was presented to Katz during a military briefing.
In the wake of Trump’s declaration earlier this week, the defense minister said he had instructed the military to prepare a plan that would enable Gazans seeking to leave the Strip voluntarily to do so.
The Ramon Airport is located some 250 kilometers (155 miles) away from Gaza, near Eilat, Israel’s southernmost city, and is adjacent to the border with Jordan, while the Ashdod port
According to the anonymous official cited in the Bloomberg report, the IDF is also examining which of the land crossings between Israel and Gaza would allow the safe passage of Palestinians out of the Strip, after they pass security screening.
The Israeli military assessment is based on the assumption that Egypt will not agree to take in Gazans, according to Bloomberg.
There was no Israeli comment on the report.
Hamas names three male hostages set to be released tomorrow from captivity, following delay
The Hamas terror group names three male hostages who are set to be released tomorrow from captivity, following an hours-long delay past the 4 p.m. deadline.
Israeli officials have requested that media outlets not publish the names until the families of the hostages have been notified.
Hamas claims Israel’s block on heavy machinery entering Gaza affecting efforts to extract hostages’ bodies
Palestinians gather by a banner welcoming people near the rubble of a collapsed building along Gaza's coastal al-Rashid Street for people to cross from the Netzarim Corridor from the southern Gaza Strip into Gaza City on January 26, 2025. (Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP)
Hamas claims Israel’s blocking of heavy machinery entering Gaza to clear rubble caused by war is affecting efforts to extract the bodies of hostages held since October 7, 2023.
“Preventing the entry of heavy equipment and machinery needed to remove 55 million tons of rubble… will undoubtedly affect the resistance’s ability to extract from under the rubble the dead prisoners (hostages),” Salama Marouf, spokesman for the terror group’s media office in Gaza, tells journalists.
The comment comes as Israel waits for Hamas to provide a list of the three male hostages slated for release tomorrow, as part of an ongoing ceasefire deal with the Palestinian terror group. According to the terms of the deal, the list was meant to be sent to Israel via mediators by 4 p.m.
Seventy-six of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 34 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Hamas has so far released 18 hostages — civilians, soldiers and Thai nationals — during the ceasefire that began in January. The terror group freed 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, and four hostages were released before that.
Eight hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 40 hostages have also been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the Israeli military as they tried to escape their captors.
Netanyahu invites US House Speaker Mike Johnson to visit Israel: ‘This year in Jerusalem’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and US Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R) speak to the press at the US Capitol following their closed-door meeting in Washington, DC, on February 7, 2025. (Oliver Contreras/AFP)
WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invites US House Speaker Mike Johnson to visit Israel this year.
“You’re invited to Israel this year in Jerusalem. I know you’re busy but find space to do that. You’ll be welcomed with a red carpet,” Netanyahu tells Johnson during remarks following their meeting at the US Capitol.
Netanyahu is slated to return to Israel tomorrow night.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Likud MK David Bitan hospitalized in neurological ICU again — reports
MK David Bitan chairs a meeting of the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee, January 15, 2024. (Noam Moskowitz, Office of the Knesset Spokesperson)
Likud MK David Bitan has been hospitalized again in the neurological ICU at the Sheba Medical Center after his condition declined, according to Hebrew media reports.
Bitan, who chairs the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee, was also hospitalized for tests in late January after he was feeling unwell.
Small commercial plane carrying 10 reported missing in Alaska; US Coast Guard joins search
WASHINGTON — Crews in Alaska are searching for a small commercial plane that went missing with 10 people on board, according to local authorities, in the latest US air incident.
The Bering Air Caravan with nine passengers and one pilot on board was reported overdue yesterday on a flight from Unalakleet to Nome at 4:00 pm Alaska Standard Time (0100 GMT), Alaska state police says.
The two cities are located roughly 235 kilometers (146 miles) apart from each other across the Norton Sound, on the state’s west coast.
Nome’s volunteer fire department says in a Facebook post that “the pilot of the plane told Anchorage air traffic control that “he intended to enter a holding pattern while waiting for the runway to be cleared” before disappearing.
The department adds that the US Coast Guard has dispatched a C-130 plane to assist ground crews in locating the missing craft.
The plane’s last known position transmitted on FlightRadar24 was over the water around 40 minutes after takeoff.
The missing flight is the latest incident in a recent string of aviation disasters in the United States.
Kanye West again floods X with antisemitic comments, praising Hitler, calling himself a Nazi
Kanye West and Bianca Censori attend the 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards on February 2, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy/AFP)
JTA — Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, floods the social network X with antisemitic comments, in a repeat of the spree that cost him his fashion deals and public esteem two years ago.
In dozens of tweets to his 32 million followers early this morning, Ye praises Hitler, calls himself a Nazi and says antisemitism is “just some bulls–t Jewish people made up to protect their bulls–t.”
He also emphasizes that he was unrepentant and in control of his faculties. “AMY JEWISH PERSON THAT DOES BUSINESS WITH ME NEEDS TO KNOW I DONT LIKE OR TRUST ANY JEWISH PERSON AMD THIS IS COMPLETELY SOBER WITH NO HENNESY,” he writes in all caps, adding, “IM NEVER APOLOGIZING FOR MY JEWISH COMMENTS.”
The spree was reminiscent of what happened in October 2022, when Ye made a string of antisemitic comments on TV, Twitter and Instagram. He was soon booted off the social media platforms and was invited back to Twitter the next month, as Elon Musk took over the platform, but was once again suspended. He was reinstated again in 2023 as Musk rebranded Twitter as X. Ye also dined with Donald Trump and Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist and Holocaust denier, at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate during this period.
Ye lost a number of brand partnerships and professional opportunities as a result of his antisemitic comments in 2022. Most notably, Adidas ended its $2 billion-per-year partnership with him after facing heavy backlash.
Social media users slam US envoy seen wearing Star of David ring in meeting with Lebanese president
This handout picture released by the Lebanese presidency shows President Joseph Aoun (R) posing for a picture with US deputy special envoy to the Middle East Morgan Ortagus after their meeting at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut on February 7, 2025 (Lebanese Presidency / AFP)
US deputy Mideast envoy Morgan Orgatus sparks chatter in Arab media and on social as photos emerge of her wearing a Star of David ring in her meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.
Social media users share cropped images of Ortagus and Aoun shaking hands, showing the ring, with one accusing her of being “more Zionist than her predecessors.”
Ortagus works under Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, who has been heavily involved in the ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Both of them are Jewish.
She is the first senior US official to visit Lebanon since US President Donald Trump took office and since Aoun was elected president in Lebanon.
Lebanese are going wild over U.S. Deputy Middle East Envoy Morgan Ortagus wearing a Star of David ring while shaking hands with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. “This envoy is more Zionist than her predecessors,” this guy says. I guess he is unaware of Hochstein’s IDF service. https://t.co/fbNxM4dbCR
— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) February 7, 2025
Dutch PM vows to preserve ‘unhindered’ functioning of ICC in The Hague, despite US sanctions
THE HAGUE — Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof says his country will seek to ensure the International Criminal Court, based in The Hague, can continue to operate despite announced US sanctions.
“Of course, as the host country, we have a responsibility to guarantee the unhindered functioning of the criminal court at all times. And we will keep doing that,” Schoof tells reporters.
Yesterday, US President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order placing sanctions on the ICC, angry over its probe into alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza.
Schoof describes the measures, which include asset freezes and travel bans against ICC officials, employees and their family members, along with anyone deemed to have helped the court’s investigations, as a “disturbing signal and very regrettable” with potentially “significant implications” for the ICC’s independence and ongoing investigations.
“The Netherlands stands by the International Criminal Court…. We are also proud of the Netherlands and also of The Hague as a city for peace and justice. The ICC is an explicit part of that. And we will do everything we can to ensure that the ICC can fulfil its tasks,” says the Dutch premier.
CENTCOM chief was in Israel this week for talks on ‘regional strategic situation’ with Halevi — US military
US CENTCOM chief Gen. Michael Kurilla (left) meets with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, in a handout image published November 3, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The head of the US Central Command, General Michael Kurilla, visited Israel this week for talks with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi on the “regional strategic situation,” the US military announces.
“During the visit, the commanders held a discussion with senior IDF (Israeli military) officers, focusing on the regional strategic situation assessment and examining ways to continue addressing the threats in the Middle East,” the military says in a statement.
Kurilla arrived in Israel on Wednesday, it adds.
Hamas yet to publish names of three male hostages set to be released tomorrow, in violation of truce terms
The 33 hostages slated to be returned in phase one of the Gaza ceasefire deal. Row 1 (L-R): Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, Arbel Yehoud, Doron Steinbrecher, Ariel Bibas, Kfir Bibas, Shiri Bibas; Row 2: Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Agam Berger, Danielle Gilboa, Naama Levy, Ohad Ben-Ami, Gadi Moshe Moses; Row 3: Keith Siegel, Ofer Calderon, Eli Sharabi, Itzik Elgarat, Shlomo Mansour, Ohad Yahalomi, Oded Lifshitz; Row 4: Tsahi Idan, Hisham al-Sayed, Yarden Bibas, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Yair Horn, Omer Wenkert, Sasha Trufanov; Row 5: Eliya Cohen, Or Levy, Avera Mengistu, Tal Shoham, Omer Shem-Tov (all photos courtesy)
Hamas has yet to publish the names of the three male hostages who are set to be released tomorrow from captivity, in violation of the ceasefire terms which oblige the terror group to update Israeli officials via the mediators by 4 p.m.
In recent days, Hamas has accused Israel of violating the deal’s terms by withholding humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.
Israeli officials have vowed to “respond harshly” to Hamas if it delays sending the list, Walla reports.
The holdup comes amid frustration from Hamas and third-party mediators over Israel’s delay in sending a team to Doha for talks regarding the deal’s second phase. Negotiations surrounding the next stage of the deal should have begun this past Monday, the 16th day of the ceasefire, as per the agreement terms.
Israel’s Army Radio reports that Hamas is considering delaying the forthcoming hostage releases in response to the late Israeli delegation, however mediators are trying to prevent this.
France affirms support for ICC after Trump sanctions, says it’ll mobilize to help world court
PARIS — France is reaffirming its support for the International Criminal Court (ICC) and will mobilize with its partners so that the ICC can continue its mission independently and impartially, a French foreign ministry spokesman says.
The statement comes after US President Donald Trump yesterday authorized economic and travel sanctions targeting people who work on ICC investigations of US citizens or US allies such as Israel.
The United States and Israel, along with China and Russia, are not members of the ICC.
IDF: Troops deployed to several points in Gaza to strengthen defense of border communities
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip in an undated photo cleared for publication on February 7, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
Troops have been deployed to several points in Gaza, under the terms of the hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas, to strengthen the layer of defense for Western Negev communities, the IDF says in a statement.
The IDF’s 99th, 143rd and 162nd Divisions also conducted several situational assessments in the field ahead of tomorrow’s hostage release, the military adds.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Israel is to gradually withdraw from Gaza and free many hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners in return for the release of some of the hostages.
Israeli delegation will depart for Doha hostage deal talks Saturday – report
The Kan public broadcaster reports that a working-level delegation will travel to Doha on Saturday night for talks on the second phase of the ceasefire and hostage release deal.
The Israel Hayom daily reports that the delegation will leave for Qatar after the hostage-prisoner exchange set for tomorrow.
The delegation should have departed today, as per a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office earlier this week, but was pushed back.
Hamas again accuses Israel of withholding humanitarian aid; COGAT: 12,600 trucks entered Gaza since start of truce
The Hamas terror group again accuses Israel of holding up the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip in violation of its obligations under the ceasefire and hostage release deal.
The head of Hamas’s government media office in Gaza, Salama Marouf, asserts that Israel is under-delivering crucial supplies of fuel, with only 15 fuel trucks entering the strip each day, rather than the expected 50.
He says that some 200,000 tents and 60,000 mobile homes are required to house the residents of the war-torn Strip and that the amount received has fallen far short.
Contradicting assessments from both the United Nations and COGAT, the Israeli Defense Ministry body responsible for overseeing the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, Marouf claims that only 8,500 aid trucks have entered Gaza in the three weeks since the ceasefire took hold.
COGAT, by contrast, says 12,600 trucks have entered since the deal came into effect, while the UN placed the number at “over 10,000,” earlier this week, amounting to roughly 550 trucks per day.
4 Israeli tourists arrested in Thailand for threatening staff at local hospital
Four Israeli tourists were arrested in Thailand yesterday and will be deported back to Israel after threatening medical staff at a local hospital in northern Thailand, Thai media reports.
According to the National Thailand, the tourists were responsible for several “disruptive incidents” at Pai Hospital, including the verbal abuse of medical staff, property damage and smoking in restricted areas, as well as theft and reckless driving.
They were identified after the fact due to a post in a Facebook group dedicated to highlighting the mistreatment of medical staff, the outlet reports.
The tourists were then arrested by the Pai Police Department and charged with causing a public nuisance, intimidation, harassment and disgraceful conduct. They were then handed over to the Thai Immigration Bureau which revoked their visas and began the process of deporting them back to Israel.
The four were also issued fines of 3,000 Thai Baht, or roughly NIS 300 ($84).
IDF intel chief tells Katz he didn’t criticize Trump’s Gaza plan, but presented possible risks ‘of the discourse’ on it, as role requires
Incoming Military Intelligence Directorate chief, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, speaks at a handover ceremony at the Glilot Base near Herzliya, August 21, 2024. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, the head of the IDF Military Intelligence Directorate, says he clarified to Defense Minister Israel Katz that he did not speak out against US President Donald Trump’s plans to take over the Gaza Strip.
“I spoke with the Defense Minister, and I clarified that I did not speak out against the Trump plan and that the IDF, and therefore I too, are subordinate to the political echelon and will follow its instructions,” Binder says in a statement issued by the military.
“By virtue of my role, I presented the possible implications of the discourse on the subject, the enemy’s view from a security perspective, and recommendations for offensive activity accordingly,” he adds.
This morning, Katz ordered IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi to reprimand Binder for reportedly warning during a closed military assessment that Trump’s plans to move Gazans out of the Strip for it to be rebuilt could result in an escalation of violence in the West Bank.
Last night, Channel 13 news reported that during an assessment on Trump’s plans to move Gazans out of the Strip for it to be rebuilt, Binder warned of potential enemy violence, including an escalation in the West Bank, resulting from the discussion of Trump’s plan. According to the report, he warned specifically about the upcoming holy Muslim month of Ramadan, which tends to be a volatile time of year.
Despite the report by Channel 13 news saying that Binder did not express criticism of the plan and only discussed the potential consequences during the assessment, Katz in a statement said that “there will be no reality in which IDF officers will speak out against US President Trump’s important plan regarding Gaza, and against the directives of the political echelon.”
Military police open probe into Gaza crane collapse that killed 2 soldiers
The IDF Military Police has launched an investigation into a deadly incident in the Gaza Strip late Wednesday, during which a crane used by the army collapsed, killing two soldiers and wounding eight others.
The Military Police investigation will probe the circumstances of the incident, including suspected negligence.
According to an initial IDF probe, strong winds that swept across the region caused a crane operated by the military to fall over during the night, crashing down on the soldiers.
The crane was holding aloft a platform containing surveillance equipment and antennas, used by the IDF in Gaza during the war to provide mobile observation for troops.
As it toppled over, the crane came down on a fortified military post, landing on a tent where the soldiers were, killing Sgt. First Class (res.) Nadav Cohen and Staff Sgt. Nachman Refael Ben Ami.
Staff Sgt. Nachman Refael Ben Ami, left, and Sgt. First Class (res.) Nadav Cohen, killed in an accidental crane collapse in Gaza on February 6, 2025. (Courtesy)
Ex-hostage Ofer Calderon leaves hospital, family says he will join fight for remaining hostages
Released hostage Ofer Calderon, top left, 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)
Former hostage Ofer Calderon, 54, has been discharged from Sheba Medical Center after completing his initial recovery and undergoing the necessary medical tests.
In a statement upon his release, the Calderon family says that Ofer’s “journey to recovery is still long and will not end until all the hostages return home.”
“Ofer promises to join the fight for their return at the first opportunity he can,” they add.
Hezbollah must not be part of new Lebanese government, US deputy envoy says
In this photo released by the Lebanese Presidency press office, Lebanese president Joseph Aoun, right, shakes hands with US deputy special envoy for Middle East peace Morgan Ortagus in Baabda, east of Beirut, Lebanon, February 7, 2025. (Lebanese Presidency press office via AP)
The United States has set a “red line” that Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah should not be a member of Lebanon’s next government after its military defeat by Israel last year, US deputy Middle East envoy Morgan Ortagus says in Lebanon.
Ortagus is the first senior US official to visit Lebanon since US President Donald Trump took office and since Joseph Aoun was elected president in Lebanon.
Her visit comes amid a stalled cabinet formation process in Lebanon, where government posts are apportioned on sectarian lines. Hezbollah’s ally Amal has insisted on approving all Shi’ite Muslim ministers, keeping the process in a deadlock.
Speaking to reporters after meeting President Aoun, Ortagus says she is “not afraid” of “Hezbollah “because they’ve been defeated militarily.”
She says that the US has “set clear red lines” to ensure that Hezbollah “won’t be able to terrorize the Lebanese people, and that includes by being a part of the government,” she says.
Germany reiterates support for ICC after Trump imposes sanctions on the court
Germany will continue to support the International Criminal Court (ICC) even though it is unclear what sanctions imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump will mean for the court, says a foreign ministry spokesperson in Berlin.
“I wouldn’t be completely surprised if some states were to come together in New York in the course of today and publicly announce this (their support) once again,” adds the spokesperson.
Right-wing groups petition Supreme Court to cancel Isaac Amit’s appointment to court president
Right-wing organizations Lavi and Im Tirtzu have filed a petition to the High Court of Justice asking it to cancel Justice Isaac Amit’s appointment as Supreme Court president.
Amit, who was elected by the Judicial Selection Committee on January 27 after 16 months without a permanent president, is set to be sworn in at a ceremony at the President’s Residence next week.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin and other members of the right-wing governing coalition have said they will refuse to recognize Amit as chief justice and will refuse to work with him, citing allegations that he had presided over several cases in which he had conflicts of interest.
The claims were reviewed by the Judicial Selection Committee before it voted to appoint Amit to the Supreme Court presidency.
Citing the conflict of interest allegations, the petitioners tell the High Court they believe Amit was elected “hastily” and “without a thorough review of a series of serious incidents.”
“The committee blatantly chose to give exclusive weight solely to the consideration of appointing a permanent president, while completely ignoring considerations of moral integrity and public trust,” the petition claims, asserting that he was not as thoroughly vetted as previous picks for the role had been.
“It is impossible to reconcile the obligation to uphold ‘strict standards of integrity, professionalism, fairness, and impartiality’ with the accelerated ‘review’ conducted in Justice Amit’s case,” the petition adds, quoting remarks made by Amit in the past.
British anti-Israel group started planning mass protest just hours after Hamas launched Oct. 7 onslaught
Protesters hold flares during a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel demonstration in London, October 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel activists in the UK began organizing a large anti-Israel demonstration in central London on October 7, 2023, even as the Hamas onslaught in southern Israel was still unfolding, UK news outlets report, citing information revealed by the Freedom of Information Act.
A recent request for information from the Metropolitan Police showed that the Palestine Solidarity Campaign called the police shortly after midday on October 7 — some eight hours after Hamas breached the Israel-Gaza border in multiple places, invaded Israel and began its slaughter — to inform the police of its plan to hold a demonstration against Israel the following Saturday, on October 14, 2023.
At the time that the request was filed, the massacre was ongoing and the IDF was scrambling to regain control of the southern communities invaded by Hamas. Israel was still far from fully understanding the scale of the unfolding disaster. In total, some 1,200 people were killed that day, most of them civilians, and 251 were taken hostage and dragged back to the Gaza Strip.
The police approved the October 14 demonstration, and it went ahead, as did other anti-Israel marches and protests elsewhere in the UK.
“The Met was contacted on Saturday, Oct. 7 at approximately 12:50 p.m., via telephone call and informed of the intention to protest,” a police spokesperson said in response to the request for information, as cited by the Telegraph. “The Met committed this to our systems on the same day and are satisfied being contacted by telephone was a sufficient means in which to notify the MPS as the event was taking place seven days after notification.”
Responding to the report, the Campaign Against Antisemitism tells the Daily Mail that “this revelation ends the charade that the Palestine Solidarity Campaign is a peaceful advocacy group.”
“For sixteen months, the Metropolitan Police has allowed regular anti-Israel marches by a group that rushed to activism while Jews were being slaughtered,” the group adds.
In a statement to the Telegraph, PSC defends its decision to begin organizing a protest on October 7, claiming that “it was already clear” Israel would respond to the Hamas onslaught with “indiscriminate violence.”
“It is entirely appropriate, therefore, that PSC would call for a protest that would seek an immediate ceasefire and call for the root causes of Israeli occupation and apartheid to be addressed,” a spokesman for the group says.
He accuses those opposed to the PSC’s actions on October 7 of attempting to “deflect attention from the crimes against humanity that Israel has committed.”
Thousands of people rallied on October 14 in London and other UK cities, demanding “Freedom for Palestine” and denouncing Israel. In London, demonstrators massed near BBC News’ headquarters before an afternoon rally near then-prime minister Rishi Sunak’s Downing Street office and residence. There were clashes in Trafalgar Square when activists threw bottles, placards and flares at the police, according to the Daily Mail, and at least 15 people were arrested.
Freed hostage Keith Siegel discharged from hospital, six days after return from Gaza
US-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel, right, reunites with his wife Aviva shortly after being released from captivity in Gaza, February 1, 2025. (IDF)
Former hostage Keith Siegel, 65, has been discharged from Ichilov Hospital after completing his initial recovery and the necessary medical checkups.
Siegel was released from Gaza on February 1 as part of the ongoing ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas.
Braving stormy weather, protesters rally at US consulate in Jerusalem to call for return of all hostages
A group of activists stage a protest outside the US consulate in Jerusalem, calling for the release of the remaining 76 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
The protest is organized by the Mishmeret 101 organization, which draws inspiration from the non-violent protests staged by Mahatma Gandhi in India in the 1930s to fight British imperialism.
Undeterred by the stormy weather, many of the protesters hold white umbrellas to protect from intermittent rain.
ירושלים עכשיו
490 יום להפקרה
משמרת 101 במחאה שקטה עד להשבת כל החטופים הביתה.
הגענו ליד הקונסוליה האמריקאית בירושלים בקריאה לשלטון שם להמשיך לדחוף לקיום ההסכם במלואו ובהקדם כדי להציל את כל החטופים שעדיין חיים ולהביא לקבורה את החללים. pic.twitter.com/l9rqN32du6— Karen Saar (@KarenSaar5) February 7, 2025
Ayala Metzger, the daughter-in-law of murdered hostage Yoram Metzger, calls for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump to ensure that the hostage deal remains intact until all three phases are carried out, despite pressure from some parts of Netanyahu’s government to dissolve it and return to fighting at the end of the first phase.
“There’s no reason to delay it, there’s no reason to postpone,” she says in a video statement from the protest site. “The hostages are languishing there, and they’re in very bad condition. Complete the deal as quickly as possible and bring everyone home!”
Israeli airstrike reported near Tebna, southern Lebanon
Lebanese media outlets report an Israeli airstrike near the village of Tebna, south of Sidon.
There is no immediate comment from the IDF.
Last night, the IDF said fighter jets hit two Hezbollah sites used by the terror group to store arms, in violation of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon.
مراسلة «#الأخبار»: غارة إسرائيلية تستهدف تبنا في أطراف #البيسارية جنوبي #لبنان pic.twitter.com/kB3SDSt1nO
— جريدة الأخبار – Al-Akhbar (@AlakhbarNews) February 7, 2025
Katz orders IDF intelligence chief to be reprimanded for warning of risks related to discussion of Trump’s Gaza plan
Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi to reprimand the head of the Military Intelligence Directorate, after a TV report cited Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder warning about potential repercussions relating to US President Donald Trump’s plans to take over the Gaza Strip.
Last night, Channel 13 news reported that during an assessment on Trump’s plans to move Gazans out of the Strip for it to be rebuilt, Binder warned of potential enemy violence, including an escalation in the West Bank, resulting from discussion of Trump’s plan. According to the report, he warned specifically about the upcoming holy Muslim month of Ramadan, which tends to be a volatile time of year.
The report noted that Binder did not express anything against Trump’s plans, rather only warned about the potential consequences of the current discourse surrounding it.
“There will be no reality in which IDF officers will speak out against US President Trump’s important plan regarding Gaza, and against the directives of the political echelon,” Katz says in a statement, despite the Channel 13 report saying that Binder expressed no criticism of the plan.
“I ordered the IDF to prepare to advance the plan for the voluntary departure of Gaza residents who would be interested in leaving to various places in the world, and that is exactly what the IDF is required to do and will do,” the defense minister adds.
Katz has repeatedly been clashing with the IDF, especially outgoing chief Halevi, in recent weeks.
Khamenei warns Iran will respond in kind to any threats, violations from US
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accuses the United States of “redrawing the map of the world” in comments to Iranian air force officers in Tehran.
While he appears to be referring to US President Donald Trump’s proposal for the Gaza Strip to be taken over by the US and turned into “the Riviera of the Middle East,” he does not directly reference it.
“The Americans sit, redrawing the map of the world — but only on paper, as it has no basis in reality,” the Iranian leader says. “They make statements about us, express opinions and issue threats. If they threaten us, we will threaten them in return. If they act on their threats, we will act on ours. If they violate the security of our nation, we will, without a doubt, respond in kind.”
International Criminal Court: US sanctions harm ‘independent, impartial judicial work’
The International Criminal Court hits back after US President Donald Trump slapped sanctions on the institution, vowing it would continue to provide “justice and hope” around the world.
“The ICC condemns the issuance by the US of an Executive Order seeking to impose sanctions on its officials and harm its independent and impartial judicial work,” the court says in a statement.
“The Court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world,” adds the court, based in The Hague.
Attacking the ICC for what he said were “illegitimate and baseless” investigations targeting America and its ally Israel, Trump hit the court with sanctions on Thursday.
“We call on our 125 States Parties, civil society and all nations of the world to stand united for justice and fundamental human rights,” the ICC statement concludes.
Khamenei appears to reject Trump’s call for new nuclear deal, says negotiating with US is unwise
Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei speaks ahead of the fifth anniversary of the assassination of Revolutionary Guard commander Qasem Soleimani, January 1, 2025. (KHAMENEI.IR / AFP)
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says that negotiations with the United States will not solve the country’s problems.
“We must understand this correctly; they should not pretend that if we sit down at the negotiating table with that government, problems will be solved,” Khamenei says during a meeting with army commanders. “No problem will be solved by negotiating with America.”
He says experience has proven that entering into negotiations with the US is “not smart, wise or honorable.”
He stops short, however, of issuing a direct order not to engage with Washington.
US President Donald Trump said earlier this week that he wants to create a new nuclear deal with Tehran, and that work on the pact should start immediately. He withdrew the US from a 2015 landmark nuclear deal with Iran during his first term in the White House, and efforts to revive it have been unsuccessful.
FM Sa’ar thanks Trump for sanctioning ‘immoral’ International Criminal Court
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar welcomes US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court, which he says has taken “immoral” and illegitimate action against Israel.
Trump on Thursday authorized economic and travel sanctions targeting people who work on International Criminal Court investigations of US citizens or US allies such as Israel.
The ICC issued arrest warrants in November for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza, amid the war against the Hamas terror group.
“I strongly commend @POTUS President Trump’s executive order imposing sanctions on the so-called ‘international criminal court,'” Sa’ar writes on X in both English and Hebrew.
“The ICC aggressively pursues the elected leaders of Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East,” he charges, adding that Israel and the US are “thriving democracies with militaries strictly adhering to international law.”
“The ICC’s actions are immoral and have no legal basis,” Sa’ar writes. “The ICC does not abide by international law. It undermines international law!”
I strongly commend @POTUS President Trump's executive order imposing sanctions on the so-called "international criminal court".
The ICC aggressively pursues the elected leaders of Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East.
The ICC has no jurisdiction – Israel and the U.S.… pic.twitter.com/n8E1fv4zh2— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) February 7, 2025
Trump administration said planning to ‘escalate and intensify’ fight against Houthis in near future
US President Donald Trump will adopt a more aggressive strategy to tackle the Iran-backed Houthi rebels than his predecessor Joe Biden did, a source familiar with US military planning tells the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news outlet.
While the Yemeni rebel group has halted its attacks on Israel and international shipping amid the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza, the source says that the Trump administration “will not sit back and wait for attacks” before targeting the group.
“Expect us to escalate and intensify in the coming weeks,” the source adds.
Upon his return to the White House last month, Trump re-labeled the Houthis as a “foreign terrorist organization,” after Biden dropped the designation in 2021 intending to address humanitarian concerns in Yemen.
Report: Haredi draft dodger arrested at Ben Gurion Airport overnight
An ultra-Orthodox yeshiva student was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport overnight for trying to evade an IDF draft order by leaving the country, Hebrew media outlets report.
The reported arrest marks the first time that action has been taken against Haredi men who fail to obey draft orders.
The IDF has issued thousands of draft orders to members of the ultra-Orthodox community after the High Court ruled in June 2024 that there was no longer any legal framework allowing the state to refrain from drafting Haredi yeshiva students into military service. Of the several thousand yeshiva students served draft orders since then, only a few hundred have shown up at induction centers.
Haredi anti-draft protests are being planned for several locations across Israel in response to the arrest, one of the organizers tells Channel 12, while Ynet reports that one such demonstration will take place outside the jail where the detained draft dodger is being held.
State Department confirms Rubio to visit Israel during mid-February trip to Mideast
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio waves before his departure at Las Americas International Airport in Santo Domingo on February 6, 2025, en route to Miami. (Mark Schiefelbein/Pool/AFP)
WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will pay his first visit to the Middle East this month, a senior State Department official says, in the wake of President Donald Trump’s remarks on relocating Gaza’s population.
Rubio will attend the Munich Security Conference and then visit Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia from February 13-18, the official says.
Trump signs order sanctioning ICC over Israel arrest warrants
US President Donald Trump, right, meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House, February 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
American President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court over its investigations of Israel.
Neither the US nor Israel are members of or recognize the court. Israel is a close US ally and the court last year issued arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant over Israel’s military conduct in Gaza during the war started by the Hamas-led terror onslaught on October 7, 2023. The court also issued warrants for three Hamas leaders, all of whom have since been killed.
Trump’s order says the ICC’s actions set a “dangerous precedent.” Sanctions include blocking ICC officials from entering the United States.
Confirming strikes, IDF says fighter jets hit Hezbollah arms depots that violated ceasefire
The IDF confirms carrying out strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, saying fighter jets hit a pair of sites where the Iran-backed terrorist group was storing weaponry in violation of the ceasefire reached in November.
A statement from the Israel Defense Forces describes the strikes as “targeted” and vows the military “will prevent any attempt by the Hezbollah terror organization to rearm, in accordance with the understandings of the ceasefire agreement.”
Netanyahu says ‘worth listening carefully’ to Trump’s proposal for Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a video statement from his hotel in Washington DC, February 6, 2025. (Screenshot/GPO)
In a video statement from his Washington hotel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that it is “worth listening carefully” to US President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.
Trump, says the prime minister, “raised his idea about Gaza, about the day after Hamas, and I think it is worth listening carefully to this idea, which is the first original idea that has been raised in years.”
He says Republican and Democrat Congressional leaders all agreed on two things – Iran must not have nuclear weapons, and “Hamas must be eliminated. It cannot be there in Gaza.”
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