Hamas frees three Israeli hostages in fifth Gaza exchange

Update From left: Hamas fighters escort Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levy and Eli Sharabi on a stage before handing them over to a Red Cross team in Deir El-Balah, central Gaza on Feb. 8, 2025. (AFP)
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From left: Hamas fighters escort Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levy and Eli Sharabi on a stage before handing them over to a Red Cross team in Deir El-Balah, central Gaza on Feb. 8, 2025. (AFP)
Update Hamas frees three Israeli hostages in fifth Gaza exchange
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From left: Israeli hostages Or Levy, Eli Sharabi and Ohad Ben Ami are set to be released by Hamas on Feb. 8, 2025 (AFP)
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Updated 09 February 2025
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Hamas frees three Israeli hostages in fifth Gaza exchange

Hamas frees three Israeli hostages in fifth Gaza exchange
  • Bus carrying released Palestinian prisoners from Israel’s Ofer prison has arrived in the occupied West Bank

DEIR EL-BALAH, Palestinian Territories: Israel and Hamas completed their fifth hostage-prisoner swap under a fragile Gaza ceasefire deal on Saturday, with the frail, disoriented appearance of the three freed Israelis sparking dismay among their relatives.

Out of the 183 inmates released by Israel in return, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club advocacy group said seven required hospitalization, decrying “brutality” and mistreatment in jail.
The fifth exchange since the truce took effect last month comes as negotiations were set to begin on the next phase of the ceasefire, which should pave the way for a permanent end to the war.

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The Hostage and Missing Families Forum urged the Israeli government on Friday to stick with the ceasefire.

Or Levy, Ohad Ben Ami, and Eli Sharabi, who were all seized by militants during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war, “crossed the border into Israeli territory” on Saturday, the Israeli military said.
With their return, 73 out of 251 hostages taken during the attack now remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Jubilant crowds in Israel’s commercial hub, Tel Aviv, cheered as they watched live footage of the three hostages, flanked by masked gunmen, brought on stage in Deir El-Balah before being handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
But the joy at their release was quickly overtaken by concern for their condition, with all three appearing thin and pale.
Sharabi’s cousin Yochi Sardinayof said “he doesn’t look well.”
“I’m sure he will now receive the right treatment and get stronger ... He has an amazing family, and we will all be there for him.”
The choreographed handover included forced statements from the three on stage, in which they stated support for finalizing the subsequent phases of the Israel-Hamas truce.
Sharabi, 52, and Ben Ami, a 56-year-old dual German citizen, were both abducted from their homes in kibbutz Beeri when militants stormed the small community near the Gaza border.
Sharabi lost his wife and two daughters in the attack.




Palestinians gather around a stage being prepared ahead of the hand over to the Red Cross of three Israeli hostages by Hamas in Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza Strip on Feb. 8, 2025. (AP)

Levy was abducted from the Nova music festival, where gunmen murdered his wife.
In the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority, relatives and supporters gathered to welcome inmates released by Israel, embracing them and cheering as they stepped off the bus that brought them from nearby Ofer prison.
Israel’s prison service said that “183 terrorists ... were released” to the West Bank, annexed East Jerusalem and Gaza.
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club advocacy group and the Palestinian Red Crescent said that seven of them had been admitted to hospital in the West Bank.
“All the prisoners who were released today need medical care ... as a result of the brutality they were subjected” to in jail, said the advocacy group, which has long decried abuses of Palestinians in Israeli custody.
Hamas, in a statement, accused Israel of “systematic assaults and mistreatment of our prisoners,” calling it “part of the policy of ... the slow killing of prisoners.”
Gaza militants have so far freed 21 hostages in exchange for hundreds of mostly Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails.
Five Thai hostages freed last week from Gaza were discharged on Saturday from a hospital in central Israel, where they had been treated since their release, and were headed back to their home country.
The ceasefire aims to secure the release of 12 more hostages during its first 42-day phase.
Negotiations on the second stage of the ceasefire were set to begin on Monday, but there have been no details on the status of the talks.
The Hostage and Missing Families Forum urged the Israeli government on Friday to stick with the truce.
“An entire nation demands to see the hostages return home,” the Israeli campaign group said in a statement.
“Now is the time to ensure the agreement is completed — until the very last one,” it added.
Netanyahu’s office said that after Saturday’s swap, an Israeli delegation would head to Doha for further talks.
Israel’s offensive has killed at least 48,181 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. The UN considers the figures reliable.
The confirmed number of dead published by the ministry has continued to rise daily as bodies are discovered under the rubble, victims are identified or people die from wounds sustained earlier in the war.
Over the last 48 hours, 26 deaths have been recorded and more than 570 earlier deaths had been confirmed, according to the ministry.
It said a total of 111,638 people have been wounded during the war, which began in October 2023.
A study published in early January in the British medical journal The Lancet estimated the death toll in Gaza due to hostilities during the first nine months of the war was about 40-percent higher than the figures recorded by the Gaza Health Ministry.

 


Lebanon rejects further Israeli delay in withdrawing forces from southern areas

Lebanon rejects further Israeli delay in withdrawing forces from southern areas
Updated 3 min 40 sec ago
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Lebanon rejects further Israeli delay in withdrawing forces from southern areas

Lebanon rejects further Israeli delay in withdrawing forces from southern areas
  • Israeli army is asking to remain in some border areas until Feb. 28
  • Lebanon informs overseeing committee of firm rejection to request

BEIRUT: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Wednesday called on Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel to “ensure the EU countries pressure Israel to complete its withdrawal from the southern border area within the set deadline of the 18th of this month.”

Aoun said that “Lebanon supports the Arab Peace Initiative and rejects any proposals that would lead to any form of Palestinian displacement from their land or undermine their legitimate rights as enshrined in United Nations resolutions.”

Six days before the full withdrawal of Israeli forces that had advanced into southern Lebanon — following a 24-day extension of the withdrawal deadline, with US approval — the committee overseeing the monitoring of the ceasefire and the implementation of Resolution 1701 was informed that the Israeli army is asking to remain in some border areas until Feb. 28. Lebanon however, has informed the committee of its firm rejection of this request.

Morgan Ortagus, US deputy ambassador for the Middle East, is expected to return to Beirut on a second visit as part of her current mission to follow up on the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon on Feb. 18.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a recent meeting at the White House asked US President Donald Trump to delay the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Lebanon for a few weeks.

Additionally, he sought to maintain Israeli control over five key hills: Jabal Blat, Labouneh, Aziziyah, Awida, and Hamames.

Lebanon’s efforts to ensure Israel’s complete withdrawal from its territory by the specified deadline are accompanied by a proposal for UNIFIL forces to be stationed in coordination with the Lebanese army to take control of the said hills.

Maj. Gen. Hassan Ouda, acting chief of Lebanon's army, met Lt. Gen. Aroldo Lazaro, commander of UNIFIL, and their “discussions focused on the efforts being made to implement Resolution 1701,” according to an army statement.

The authorities in Lebanon are awaiting the Trump administration to fulfill its commitment regarding the scheduled withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Last week, Ortagus said in a statement from Beirut that her country “is dedicated to ensuring that Israel completes its withdrawal on the specified timeline.”

Meanwhile, Avichay Adraee, spokesperson for the Israeli military, issued an urgent warning on social media to the residents of southern Lebanon.

“The Israeli army remains deployed in the field following the extension of the agreement’s implementation period. Therefore, you are prohibited from moving south or returning to your homes in the areas in question until further notice. Anyone attempting to move south is at risk,” he posted.

On Wednesday, Israeli forces continued bombing border villages in the eastern and central Gaza Strip and set houses ablaze.

Additionally, Israeli forces carried out bulldozing operations on the outskirts of the town of Al-Dahira and used cranes to install concrete slabs at the technical fence of the Blue Line.

Also on Wednesday, a young man, identified as Khalil Fayyad, succumbed to gunshot wounds inflicted by Israeli forces on Jan. 26 in his hometown of Aitaroun during residents’ attempts to return to the town.


Egypt president, Jordan king stress ‘unity’ of positions on Gaza

Egypt president, Jordan king stress ‘unity’ of positions on Gaza
Updated 6 sec ago
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Egypt president, Jordan king stress ‘unity’ of positions on Gaza

Egypt president, Jordan king stress ‘unity’ of positions on Gaza
  • Leaders stressed the need for reconstructing Gaza without displacing the Palestinians

CAIRO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II stressed Wednesday the “unity” of their countries’ positions on Gaza, a day after US President Donald Trump held talks with the Jordanian monarch in Washington.
“The two leaders affirmed the unity of the Egyptian and Jordanian positions, including the necessity of the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, the continued release of hostages and prisoners and facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid,” a statement from the Egyptian presidency said, stressing the need for the “immediate start of the reconstruction process in the Gaza Strip, without displacing the Palestinian people from their land.”


124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters

124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters
Updated 43 min 43 sec ago
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124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters

124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters
  • Journalists murdered across 18 different countries in 2024, including Palestine, Sudan and Pakistan
  • Sudan and Pakistan record second-highest number of journalists and media workers killed, six each

NEW YORK: Last year was the deadliest for journalists in recent history, with at least 124 reporters killed — and Israel responsible for nearly 70 percent of that total, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported Wednesday.
The uptick in killings, which marks a 22 percent increase over 2023, reflects “surging levels of international conflict, political unrest and criminality worldwide,” the CPJ said.
It was the deadliest year for reporters and media workers since CPJ began keeping records more than three decades ago, with journalists murdered across 18 different countries, it said.
A total of 85 journalists died in the Israeli-Hamas war, “all at the hands of the Israeli military,” the CPJ said, adding that 82 of them were Palestinians.
Sudan and Pakistan recorded the second highest number of journalists and media workers killed, with six each.
In Mexico, which has a reputation as one of the most dangerous countries for reporters, five were killed, with CPJ reporting it had found “persistent flaws” in Mexico’s mechanisms for protecting journalists.
And in Haiti, where two reporters were murdered, widespread violence and political instability have sown so much chaos that “gangs now openly claim responsibility for journalist killings,” the report said.
Other deaths took place in countries such as Myanmar, Mozambique, India and Iraq.
“Today is the most dangerous time to be a journalist in CPJ’s history,” said the group’s CEO Jodie Ginsberg.
“The war in Gaza is unprecedented in its impact on journalists and demonstrates a major deterioration in global norms on protecting journalists,” she said.
CPJ, which has kept records on journalist killings since 1992, said that 24 of the reporters were deliberately killed because of their work in 2024.
Freelancers, the report said, were among the most vulnerable because of their lack of resources, and accounted for 43 of the killings in 2024.
The year 2025 is not looking more promising, with six journalists already killed in the first weeks of the year, CPJ said.


124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters

124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters
Updated 12 February 2025
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124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters

124 journalists killed, most by Israel, in deadliest year for reporters
  • The uptick in killings marks a 22 percent increase over 2023
  • Journalists murdered across 18 different countries, including Palestine's Gaza, Sudan and Pakistan

NEW YORK: Last year was the deadliest for journalists in recent history, with at least 124 reporters killed — and Israel responsible for nearly 70 percent of that total, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported Wednesday.
The uptick in killings, which marks a 22 percent increase over 2023, reflects “surging levels of international conflict, political unrest and criminality worldwide,” the CPJ said.
It was the deadliest year for reporters and media workers since CPJ began keeping records more than three decades ago, with journalists murdered across 18 different countries, it said.
A total of 85 journalists died in the Israeli-Hamas war, “all at the hands of the Israeli military,” the CPJ said, adding that 82 of them were Palestinians.
Sudan and Pakistan recorded the second highest number of journalists and media workers killed, with six each.
In Mexico, which has a reputation as one of the most dangerous countries for reporters, five were killed, with CPJ reporting it had found “persistent flaws” in Mexico’s mechanisms for protecting journalists.
And in Haiti, where two reporters were murdered, widespread violence and political instability have sown so much chaos that “gangs now openly claim responsibility for journalist killings,” the report said.
Other deaths took place in countries such as Myanmar, Mozambique, India and Iraq.
“Today is the most dangerous time to be a journalist in CPJ’s history,” said the group’s CEO Jodie Ginsberg.
“The war in Gaza is unprecedented in its impact on journalists and demonstrates a major deterioration in global norms on protecting journalists,” she said.
CPJ, which has kept records on journalist killings since 1992, said that 24 of the reporters were deliberately killed because of their work in 2024.
Freelancers, the report said, were among the most vulnerable because of their lack of resources, and accounted for 43 of the killings in 2024.
The year 2025 is not looking more promising, with six journalists already killed in the first weeks of the year, CPJ said.


UAE’s president receives phone call from US secretary of state

UAE’s president receives phone call from US secretary of state
Updated 12 February 2025
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UAE’s president receives phone call from US secretary of state

UAE’s president receives phone call from US secretary of state
  • Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan tells Marco Rubio that 2-state solution is key for peace in Middle East

LONDON:  Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the president of the UAE, received a phone call from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday.

The UAE’s president told Rubio that a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the key to peace in the Middle East.

Sheikh Mohamed emphasized the need for a just and lasting peace in the region, ensuring security and stability for everyone, the Emirates News Agency reported.

The parties discussed ways to strengthen cooperation across various fields to serve the countries’ strategic relationship.