Ƶ

Israel threatens to resume fighting if Hamas does not respect Gaza truce deal

Israel threatens to resume fighting if Hamas does not respect Gaza truce deal
Hamas militants stand guard as Red Cross vehicles (not pictured) transport the bodies of hostages who were held in Gaza after they were handed over by Hamas militants as part of a ceasefire and a hostage-prisoner swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Gaza City, on October 15, 2025. (REUTERS)
Short Url
Updated 12 sec ago

Israel threatens to resume fighting if Hamas does not respect Gaza truce deal

Israel threatens to resume fighting if Hamas does not respect Gaza truce deal
  • Hamas’s armed wing said the two bodies returned would be the last for now — falling far short of the plan’s demand to hand over all of them
  • But senior US advisersafter Israel’s threat to resume fighting, that Hamas still intends to make good on its pledge

JERUSALEM: Israel’s defense minister threatened Wednesday to resume fighting if Hamas does not honor the terms of a US-backed ceasefire that halted the war in Gaza.
The statement from Defense Minister Israel Katz’s office came after Hamas handed over the remains of two more deceased hostages, and said it would be unable to retrieve any more bodies from the ruins of Gaza without specialized equipment.
Since Monday, under a ceasefire agreement brokered by US President Donald Trump, the Palestinian Islamist group has handed back 20 surviving hostages to Israel in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners freed from Israeli jails.
Before the two bodies were handed over late on Wednesday, Hamas had already returned the remains of seven of 28 known deceased hostages — along with an eighth body which Israel said was not that of a former hostage.
“If Hamas refuses to comply with the agreement, Israel, in coordination with the United States, will resume fighting and act to achieve a total defeat of Hamas, to change the reality in Gaza and achieve all the objectives of the war,” a statement from Katz’s office said.
Hamas’s armed wing said the two bodies returned would be the last for now — falling far short of the plan’s demand to hand over all of them.
“The Resistance has fulfilled its commitment to the agreement by handing over all living Israeli prisoners in its custody, as well as the corpses it could access,” the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement on social media.
“As for the remaining corpses, it requires extensive efforts and special equipment for their retrieval and extraction. We are exerting great effort in order to close this file.”
But senior US advisers said Wednesday, after Israel’s threat to resume fighting, that Hamas still intends to make good on its pledge.
“We continue to hear from them that they intend to honor the deal. They want to see the deal completed in that regard,” one adviser told reporters on condition of anonymity.
Still, any delay in returning the remaining bodies is likely to pile further domestic pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to tie humanitarian aid to the fate of the bodies.
Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has threatened to cut off desperately needed aid supplies to Gaza if Hamas fails to return the remains of soldiers still held in the Palestinian territory.

Humanitarian risk

Israel, meanwhile, transferred another 45 Palestinian bodies that had been in its custody to Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, bringing the number returned to 90, the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry said.
Under the Trump plan, Israel is to return 15 Palestinian dead for every deceased Israeli hostage.
With the deal underway, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher urged Israel to immediately open all crossings into Gaza for humanitarian aid.
“It should happen now. We want it to happen immediately as part of this agreement,” Fletcher told AFP in an interview in Cairo on Wednesday, ahead of a planned trip to the Gaza border.
Israeli public broadcaster KAN had reported that the Rafah crossing point to Egypt would reopen, but this did not happen, and an Israeli spokesperson did not respond to an AFP request for comment.
Fletcher, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief, is expected to head to the Rafah crossing on Thursday.
It is the only border point that connects Gaza to the world without passing through Israel.
“The test is that we have children fed, that we have anaesthetics in the hospitals for people getting treatment, that we have tents over people’s heads,” Fletcher said.

Possible violations

Gaza’s civil defense agency, which operates as a rescue force under Hamas, said Israeli fire killed three Palestinians on Wednesday, including two while trying to reach their homes in the Shujaiya neighborhood of Gaza City.
The Israeli military said that “several suspects were identified crossing the yellow line and approaching” troops in the northern Gaza Strip, referencing the line to which Israeli forces have pulled back to under the ceasefire deal.
The military said this “violates the agreement” and that “troops removed the threat by striking the suspects.”
The war sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel led to a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, with the densely populated territory reliant on aid that was heavily restricted, when not cut off outright.
At the end of August, the United Nations declared a famine in Gaza, though Israel rejected the claim. The return of aid is listed in Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza.
Another political challenge is Hamas’s disarmament, a demand the militant group has refused to accept.
Hamas is tightening its grip on Gaza’s ruined cities, but Israel and the United States insist the group can have no role in a future government for the territory.


Hunger in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen at ‘breaking point’ amid sharp funding cuts

Hunger in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen at ‘breaking point’ amid sharp funding cuts
Updated 16 October 2025

Hunger in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen at ‘breaking point’ amid sharp funding cuts

Hunger in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen at ‘breaking point’ amid sharp funding cuts
  • ‘This is the last lifeline being severed,’ World Food Programme warns as it projects 13.7m people will fall into emergency levels of hunger this year due to funding cuts
  • Organization is ‘looking at two concurrent famines’ for first time in its history ‘and the number of people facing famine-like conditions has doubled in just 2 years’

NEW YORK CITY: The World Food Programme warned on Wednesday that a sharp decrease in funding is pushing food aid operations in crisis-hit countries, including Gaza, Sudan and Yemen, toward collapse, risking famine among millions of people already on the brink of starvation.

In a report titled “A Lifeline at Risk,” WFP officials said unprecedented funding shortfalls are forcing the agency to slash rations, suspend vital food distributions, and cut entire populations off from aid in six of the world’s most fragile places: Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan, Yemen, Somalia and Afghanistan.

“Across these six countries, we’re seeing people completely cut off from assistance,” said Ross Smith, director of emergency preparedness and response.

“These are the most vulnerable, living in the most fragile settings. We are at a breaking point.”

Jean-Martin Bauer, the organization’s director of food security and nutrition analysis, joined Smith in warning that projections suggest 13.7 million people will fall into emergency levels of hunger this year alone as a direct result of funding cuts.

“This isn’t theoretical,” Bauer. “These are mothers and children being turned away from clinics. This is the last lifeline being severed.

“We are looking at two concurrent famines for the first time in WFP’s history, in Gaza and Sudan, and the number of people facing famine-like conditions has doubled in just two years.”

According to the WFP, 1.4 million people in five places — Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan, Mali and Yemen — are facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity ranked by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification system as Phase 5; this denotes the worst possible situation, or famine-like conditions.

Palestinians gather to receive food portions from a charity kitchen in the Nuseirat refugee camp, located in the central Gaza Strip, on October 15, 2025, two days after a ceasefire came into effect. (AFP)

In Gaza, the WFP warned, access restrictions and funding gaps could leave vast swaths of the population without food in the coming weeks.

The situation in Sudan, described by the organization as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, is equally alarming. Although the WFP provided 4.1 million people with aid in August, it said it has the capacity to reach nearly double that number but lacks the resources to do so.

“Unless urgent funding is secured, we will have to reduce our footprint in Sudan and many other places,” Smith said.

Other countries causing great concern include Afghanistan, where the WFP said it can currently assist less than 10 percent of the more than 10 million people facing acute food insecurity. Winter assistance is expected to reach less than 8 percent of those in need.

In South Sudan, record flooding has displaced populations, but funding shortfalls have forced the organization to scale down large-scale food-aid programs to a “famine-prevention” model that targets only the most critical areas.

In Somalia, emergency food assistance has been cut by 75 percent compared with a year ago, with only 350,000 people targeted for help in November.

In Haiti, funding shortfalls have forced the suspension of efforts to provide hot meals for displaced communities, and left the country unprepared for the ongoing hurricane season.

Globally, 319 million people are affected by acute food insecurity, and 44 million are already at emergency levels of hunger. WFP officials said the situation is exacerbated by a dangerous narrative that suggests some crises, such as the situations in Afghanistan or Haiti, are no longer emergencies.

“There’s a real risk that the world turns away, just as needs reach their peak,” Bauer said, warning that the erosion of humanitarian infrastructure and data systems could have long-term consequences.

“The GPS of the humanitarian system — our data and analytics — is now also under threat. Without it, we’re flying blind,” he added.

The WFP expects a 40 percent reduction in its assistance levels this year, with further cuts possible in 2026 unless donors urgently step in to help.

“Famine is not inevitable,” said Bauer. “But without action, it is becoming increasingly likely.”


Israeli intelligence shared with US claims Hamas has access to more bodies, Axios reports

Israeli intelligence shared with US claims Hamas has access to more bodies, Axios reports
Updated 15 October 2025

Israeli intelligence shared with US claims Hamas has access to more bodies, Axios reports

Israeli intelligence shared with US claims Hamas has access to more bodies, Axios reports
  • Israel told the US Hamas was not doing enough to recover the bodies of dead Israeli hostages

WASHINGTON: Israeli intelligence shared with the US claimed that Hamas had access to more bodies than claimed by the Palestinian militant group, Axios reported on Wednesday.
Axios reported that Israel told the US Hamas was not doing enough to recover the bodies of dead Israeli hostages, and that the Gaza deal cannot move into the next phase until that changes. It cited two Israeli officials and one US official.


Red Cross has received remains of 2 more Hamas hostages to be given to Israel

Red Cross has received remains of 2 more Hamas hostages to be given to Israel
Updated 15 October 2025

Red Cross has received remains of 2 more Hamas hostages to be given to Israel

Red Cross has received remains of 2 more Hamas hostages to be given to Israel
  • The Israeli military said the International Committee of the Red Cross received the remains, which were to be transferred to Israeli forces in Gaza
  • The Gaza Health Ministry said it received 45 more bodies of Palestinians from Israel

JERUSALEM: The Red Cross received the remains of two more Hamas hostages on Wednesday, hours after the Israeli military said that one of the bodies previously turned over was not that of a hostage. The confusion added to tensions over the fragile truce that has paused the two-year war.
The Israeli military said the International Committee of the Red Cross received the remains, which were to be transferred to Israeli forces in Gaza.
Earlier Wednesday, military officials said one of the bodies previously handed over by Hamas was not that of a hostage who was held in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Gaza Health Ministry said it received 45 more bodies of Palestinians from Israel, another step in implementation of the ceasefire agreement. That brings to 90 the total number of bodies returned to Gaza for burial. The forensics team examining the remains said they showed signs of mistreatment.
As part of the deal, four bodies of hostages were handed over by Hamas on Tuesday, following four on Monday that were returned hours after the last 20 living hostages were released from Gaza. In all, Israel has been awaiting the return of the bodies of 28 hostages.
The Israeli military said forensic testing showed that “the fourth body handed over to Israel by Hamas does not match any of the hostages.” There was no immediate word on whose body it was.
In exchange for the release of the hostages, Israel freed around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees Monday.
Unidentified bodies returned to Gaza show signs of abuse
Israel is expected to turn over more bodies, though officials have not said how many are in its custody or how many will be returned. It is unclear whether the remains belong to Palestinians who died in Israeli custody or were taken from Gaza by Israeli troops. Throughout the war, Israel’s military has exhumed bodies as part of its search for the remains of hostages.
As forensic teams examined the first remains returned, the Health Ministry on Wednesday released images of 32 unidentified bodies to help families recognize missing relatives.
Many appeared decomposed or burned. Some were missing limbs or teeth, while others were coated in sand and dust. Health officials have said Israeli restrictions on allowing DNA testing equipment into Gaza have often forced morgues to rely on physical features and clothing for identification.
The forensics team that received the bodies said some arrived still shackled or bearing signs of physical abuse.
Sameh Hamad, a member of a commission tasked with receiving the bodies at Khan Younis’ Nasser Hospital, said some arrived with their hands and legs cuffed.
“There are signs of torture and executions,” he told The Associated Press.
The bodies, he said, belonged to men ages 25 to 70. Most had bands on their necks, including one that had a rope around the neck.
Most of the bodies wore civilian clothing, but some were in uniforms, suggesting they were militants.
Hamad said the Red Cross provided names for only three of the dead, leaving many families uncertain of their relatives’ fate. The fighting has killed nearly 68,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government in Gaza. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by UN agencies and independent experts.
Thousands more people are missing, according to the Red Cross and Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
Rasmiya Qudeih, 52, waited outside Nasser Hospital, hoping her son would be among the 45 bodies transferred from Israel on Wednesday.
He vanished on Oct. 7, 2023, the day of the Hamas-led attack that triggered the war. She was told he was killed by an Israeli strike.
“God willing, he will be with the bodies,” she said.
Netanyahu says Israel won’t compromise
The ceasefire plan introduced by US President Donald Trump had called for all hostages — living and dead — to be handed over by a deadline that expired Monday. But under the deal, if that didn’t happen, Hamas was to share information about deceased hostages and try to hand them over as soon as possible.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel “will not compromise” and demanded that Hamas fulfill the requirements laid out in the ceasefire deal about the return of hostages’ bodies.
Trump, in an interview with CNN, warned that Israel could resume the war if he feels Hamas isn’t upholding its end of the agreement.
“Israel will return to those streets as soon as I say the word,” Trump said.
Hamas’ armed wing said in a statement Wednesday that the group honored the ceasefire’s terms and handed over the remains of the hostages it had access to.
Hamas and the Red Cross have said that recovering the remains of dead hostages was a challenge because of Gaza’s vast destruction, and Hamas has told mediators that some are in areas controlled by Israeli troops.
Two hostages whose bodies were released from Gaza were being buried Wednesday.


Netanyahu back in court for hearing in corruption trial

Netanyahu back in court for hearing in corruption trial
Updated 15 October 2025

Netanyahu back in court for hearing in corruption trial

Netanyahu back in court for hearing in corruption trial
  • PM, wife accepted $260,000 worth of gifts from billionaires in exchange for political favors
  • He also faces charges of war crimes at the ICCover Israel’s attacks against Gaza civilians

TEL AVIV: Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was back in a Tel Aviv court on Wednesday for the latest hearing in his long-running corruption trial, which opened in May 2020.
The prime minister kept a smiling face as he and his entourage of several ministers from his conservative Likud party were heckled by protesters en route to the tribunal.
It comes after US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that the Israeli premier should be pardoned in his three separate corruption cases.
His latest appearance at the Tel Aviv court also follows the return of the hostages taken by Hamas as part of Trump’s US-brokered plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including champagne, cigars and jewelry, from billionaires in exchange for political favors.
In two other instances, Netanyahu is also charged with attempting to negotiate better press coverage from two Israeli media outlets. He has denied any wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a political plot.
During his current term, which started in late 2022, Netanyahu has proposed far-reaching judicial reforms that critics say sought to weaken the courts.
Those prompted massive protests that only abated after the onset of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
In an address on Monday to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, Trump told the chamber that Netanyahu should receive a pardon in the graft cases.
“Cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?” Trump joked, before asking his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog: “Why don’t you give him a pardon?“
The Israeli premier is also subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on suspicion of ordering war crimes in his government’s assault on Hamas militants in Gaza.
Netanyahu holds the record for the most years spent at the head of Israel’s government, having served 18 years in several stints as premier since 1996.
 


Maronite leader says Pope Leo will carry message of ‘peace’ to Lebanon

Maronite leader says Pope Leo will carry message of ‘peace’ to Lebanon
Updated 15 October 2025

Maronite leader says Pope Leo will carry message of ‘peace’ to Lebanon

Maronite leader says Pope Leo will carry message of ‘peace’ to Lebanon
  • Rai said that the US-born pope “will bring peace and hope to Lebanon during his visit“
  • “He comes at a time when the war in Gaza has ceased... and we are living in Lebanon under a ceasefire, despite violations occurring“

BKERKE, Lebanon: Pope Leo XIV will carry a message of peace to Lebanon and the Christians of the Middle East when he visits next month, Maronite Patriarch Bechara Al-Rai told AFP on Wednesday.
The Vatican said last week that Pope Leo will travel to Turkiye and Lebanon in a six-day trip beginning late November, his first since becoming head of the Catholic Church.
Rai, who heads the Maronite Church, religiously diverse Lebanon’s most influential Christian sect, hailed the pontiff’s visit at a time of truce in the conflict between Israel and Lebanon, as well as the war in Gaza.
In an interview with AFP from the Maronite Patriarchate headquarters in Bkerke, north of Beirut, Rai said that the US-born pope “will bring peace and hope to Lebanon during his visit.”
“He comes at a time when the war in Gaza has ceased... and we are living in Lebanon under a ceasefire, despite violations occurring,” he added.
After more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah Islamist group, a ceasefire agreement was signed in November.
The truce remains in effect despite Israel carrying out near-daily strikes on Lebanon, claiming to target Hezbollah members and infrastructure.
A few days ago, a ceasefire also came into effect in the Gaza Strip after a devastating two-year war between the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel.
“I believe that during this visit, he will focus on peace, and he will ask Lebanon to continue on its path toward peace,” said Rai, whose Church is in full communion with Rome.

- ‘Preserve Lebanon’ -

The latest conflict killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon and devastated Beirut’s southern suburbs and the country’s south and east, areas where Hezbollah holds sway.
Last week, Pope Leo said that his trip to Lebanon from November 30 to December 2 presents “the opportunity to announce once again the message of peace... in a country that has also suffered so much.”
Rai, who has long called for Lebanon to be kept out of regional conflicts, stated that he believes the visit “will remind all Lebanese, Christians and Muslims alike, of their responsibility to preserve Lebanon.”
“The value of Lebanon lies in the fact that each of its groups maintains its role and identity. Coexistence means that Christians have their identity and Muslims have theirs. The pope does not come to say, ‘abandon your identity’, but rather, ‘Live your identity’,” he added.
“This is how the Vatican understands Lebanon, with its cultural and religious pluralism.”
Pope Leo XIV is the third pontiff to visit Lebanon, after John Paul II in 1997 and Benedict XVI in 2012, who received a tremendous popular reception.
His trip comes in the wake of a series of crises that have ravaged Lebanon, from a crushing economic crisis that began in 2019, to the horrific port explosion the following summer, to the recent war.
“The visit is a great relief for Christians in Lebanon,” Rai said, as well as for “Christians in Syria, Iraq, Iran, and the Holy Land,” who have gone through wars, conflicts, and waves of displacement.