Hamas says it won’t rejoin talks until Israel releases 620 Palestinians, as the Gaza ceasefire hangs by a thread.

Trump suggests that Ukraine may be to blame for conflict with Russia; Palestinians flee northern West Bank amid Israeli crackdown on militants; Hamas

Israeli hostage Avera Mengisto is escorted by Hamas fighters before being handed over to the Red Cross in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Jerusalem will demand the complete disarmament of Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups, the Israeli foreign minister stressed.

The grotesque Hamas circus surrounding the release of Israeli hostages has shocked many around the world. Israeli forensic tests on the bodies of the youngest of the murdered Israeli hostages, Kfir and Ariel Bibas aged 10 months and four years,

At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks and more than 200 taken captive. For more on Israel’s continued attacks in the occupied West Bank, see here. Read here about how and why pro-Palestine protests on US campuses are growing smaller.

Tal Shoham and Avera Mengistu were the latest hostages to be released by Hamas in Rafah. Both hostages were transferred to Israeli custody and have crossed into the country. Four additional hostages are set to be released in Nuseirat.

Three members of the Hamas-run police force were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Rafah while securing aid coming into Gaza, according to Hamas. Their bodies were transported to the European Hospital in Khan Younis where mourners told an NBC News crew that they urge Israel to stick to the ceasefire.

Associated Press video shows people in Gaza running towards moving aid trucks and taking sacks of supplies. Since the ceasefire last month between Hamas and Israel, aid has been entering Gaza. Copyright 2025 The Associated Press.

Aid and fuel trucks continued to move through Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday (February 11), a day after Hamas said it would stop releasing Israeli hostages until further notice over what it said were Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement.

Israeli hostages Averu Mengistu (4th-R) and Tal Shoham (L) are flanked by Hamas fighters as they stand on a stage during their release in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday. TEL AVIV — Israel released two Israeli hostages early Saturday among six to be freed in exchange for more than 600 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails.

Hamas is preparing to release a total of six living hostages on Saturday in two separate locations of the Gaza Strip -- the city of Rafah in the south and the Nuseirat refugee camp in the center of the enclave.