The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that Donald Trump championed has mostly held, but progress has slowed recently.
Middle East Peace
The vote was a crucial next step for the fragile ceasefire and efforts to outline Gaza’s future following two years of war between Israel and Hamas.
The remains of four hostages are still in Gaza after Palestinian militants released the remains of another on Sunday.
With Monday’s return, the bodies of 270 Palestinians have been handed back since the start of the ceasefire.
Since the ceasefire in Gaza took effect on Oct. 10, Palestinian militants had released the remains of 17 hostages, with 11 remaining in Gaza.
Had President Donald Trump not been re-elected, terrorist entities would try to “wipe out” the State of Israel, Sen. Rick Scott told a packed crowd in Las Vegas.
A Greek-flagged oil tanker in the Red Sea came under attack, leaving the vessel drifting ablaze. The British military said it suspects Yemen’s Houthi terrorists as the attackers.
\Diplomatic efforts have redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of leaders of the terrorist Hamas and Hezbollah groups.
Israel’s military said it recovered the bodies of six hostages taken in the Oct. 7 Hamas-led terrorist attack that started the war.
Israeli officials say the explosion, which appeared to be part of a failed bombing attack, left the attacker dead and a bystander wounded.
The high-stakes negotiations have gained urgency in recent days.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will use his ninth diplomatic mission to the Middle East since the start of the Israel-Hamas war to press for the conclusion of a cease-fire agreement.
An Israel airstrike in Gaza killed at least 18 people on Saturday, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, where casualties were taken.
Officials said two days of talks had wrapped up in Qatar and that they plan to reconvene in Cairo next week to seal an agreement to stop the fighting.
International mediators held a new round of talks Thursday aimed at halting the Israel-Hamas war and securing the release of scores of hostages.
The announcement also comes just days after the school confirmed that three deans had resigned after officials said they exchanged disparaging texts during a campus discussion about Jewish life and antisemitism.
Cease-fire talks between Hamas and Israel are expected to resume in Qatar on Thursday with Qatari, Egyptian, and U.S. mediators.
The U.S. approved $20 billion in arms sales to Israel, including scores of fighter jets and advanced air-to-air missiles, the State Department announced Tuesday.
Hamas appeared to push back against resuming negotiations with Israel on any new cease-fire proposals. Instead, it wants to revisit plans discussed last month.
An Israeli airstrike in Gaza targeted the Tabeen school in central Gaza City, saying it hit a Hamas command center and killed 19 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters.
Israeli evacuation orders triggered an exodus of Palestinians from the eastern districts of Khan Younis.