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Donald Trump has said he is “not confident” that the temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will hold.
On his first day in office yesterday, the newly-inaugurated US President told reporters the militant group is weakened, but: “I’m not confident. That’s not our war. It’s their war.”
He said his administration “might” help rebuild Gaza, which he compared to a “massive demolition site”, but then went on to describe as having strong real estate potential.
Trump also rescinded Biden-era executive orders that sanctioned far-right Israeli settlers for undermining peace in the territory.
Meanwhile, shocked Palestinians have begun returning to what is left of their homes in Gaza, with a search underway for the 10,000 bodies believed by the Palestinian Emergency Services to still be buried under rubble.
The devastated Strip continued to receive an influx of aid and goods on the second day of the truce, with 915 trucks crossing into the coastal enclave, according to the UN.
It comes as at least 12 people were treated for injuries after Israeli settlers attacked two occupied West Bank villages north of Jerusalem, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.
Earlier, the relatives of the first three Israeli women freed from captivity in the Strip issued public statements, thanking those who made their release possible and pleading with the Israeli government to keep up the phased agreement that led to their loved ones’ release.
Two people reportedly shot in Gaza despite ceasefire deal
Two people have reportedly been shot in Gaza despite the ceasefire deal that is in place, according to Palestinian reports.
The civilians were injured in Israeli gunfire in two separate incidents on Tuesday, one in the sea of Gaza City and the other in the Sabra neighborhood, reported Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 11:00
Israeli military says forces have begun operation in West Bank
The Israeli military has said its forces have begun an operation in the West Bank city of Jenin.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 10:46
Hamas says four female Israeli hostages to be released on Saturday, according to reports
Hamas has reportedly said four Israeli hostages will be released on Saturday.
An official in the militant group, Taher al-Nunu, said the captives, all women, would be freed in return for Palestinian prisoners, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the Guardian reported.
This would be the second such exchange under the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 10:39
After 15 months of war, Hamas still rules over what remains of Gaza
As a ceasefire brought calm to Gaza’s ruined cities, Hamas was quick to emerge from hiding.
The militant group has not only survived 15 months of war with Israel – among the deadliest and most destructive in recent memory – but it remains firmly in control of the coastal territory that now resembles an apocalyptic wasteland. With a surge of humanitarian aid promised as part of the ceasefire deal, the Hamas-run government said Monday that it will coordinate distribution to the desperate people of Gaza.
For all the military might Israel deployed in Gaza, it failed to remove Hamas from power, one of its central war aims. That could make a return to fighting more likely, but the results might be the same.
There was an element of theater in Sunday’s handover of three Israeli hostages to the Red Cross, when dozens of masked Hamas fighters wearing green headbands and military fatigues paraded in front of cameras and held back a crowd of hundreds who surrounded the vehicles.
The scenes elsewhere in Gaza were even more remarkable: Thousands of Hamas-run police in uniform re-emerged, making their presence known even in the most heavily destroyed areas.
“The police have been here the whole time, but they were not wearing their uniforms” to avoid being targeted by Israel, said Mohammed Abed, a father of three who returned to his home in Gaza City more than seven months after fleeing the area.
“They were among the displaced people in the tents. That’s why there were no thefts,” he said.
Other residents said the police had maintained offices in hospitals and other locations throughout the war, where people could report crimes.
Israel has repeatedly blamed Hamas for the heavy civilian death toll and damage to infrastructure because the group’s fighters and security forces embed themselves in residential neighborhoods, schools and hospitals.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 10:20
Palestinians begin search for those buried under rubble as they return home
Now attention is starting to shift to the rebuilding of the Strip after the truce took effect on Sunday, with the release of the first three hostages held by Hamas and 90 Palestinians freed from Israeli jails.
Read the full story here:
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 09:56
Watch: Netanyahu thanks Trump for ‘helping free’ Israeli hostages
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 09:48
Trump ‘not confident’ ceasefire in Gaza will hold
Donald Trump has said Hamas is weakened, but he is hardly certain that the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas will hold.
“I’m not confident,” the new US President told reporters. “That’s not our war. It’s their war.”
He said his administration “might” help rebuild Gaza, which he compared to a “massive demolition site.”
“Some beautiful things could be done with it,” said Trump, the real estate developer turned commander in chief, noting the territory’s coastline and “phenomenal” weather and location. “Some fantastic things could be done with Gaza. Some beautiful things could be done with Gaza.”
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 09:22
Full story: Freed British Israeli hostage who lost two fingers ‘on road to recovery’ says mother
A British-Israeli hostage is “in high spirits and on the road to recovery,” her mother has said, during the first public comments made by the relatives of the three women freed from captivity in Gaza on Sunday.
Speaking from Sheba hospital in Tel Aviv where the women are still being evaluated, Mandy Damari said her daughter Emily, 28 was recovering well, despite having lost two fingers on her left hand. She thanked those who helped secure Emily’s release “from the bottom of our hearts” and urged people to “keep on fighting for the remaining 94 hostages.”
“There are too many other families waiting to hug their loved ones or bring them back for a proper burial,” she added.
The Independent’s chief international correspondent Bel Trew has the full story:
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 09:05
Antisemitic attacks escalate in Australia
Australia has been grappling with a spate of antisemitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars since the beginning of the Israel-Gaza war in late 2023.
Authorities have designated some of the incidents as terrorism and vowed to crack down on the perpetrators amid concerns of further escalation, with half a dozen incidents occurring across Sydney in the past month alone.
Police in the state of New South Wales, that has Sydney as its capital, have arrested forty people for antisemitic offences and eight relation to arson.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 08:41
Turkey could restart Israel trade if peace permanent, trade body says
Turkey could restart trade with Israel “if peace is permanent”, Nail Olpak, head of the Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), said on Tuesday.
Turkey severed trade with Israel last year over its war in Gaza with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. This week Israel and Hamas began carrying out a complex ceasefire deal.
Tara Cobham21 January 2025 08:39
