The cease-fire has held despite a dispute earlier this week over the sequence in which the hostages were released.

These developments do not bode well for the success of the next phases of the ceasefire, let alone a lasting peace. Palestinians consider Gaza, the West Bank and the Golan as part of what should be a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu rejects. The situation in Gaza also offers encouraging signs and cause for concern.

If this ceasefire is to last, the underlying cause of the violence must be addressed and Palestinians must be free to govern themselves without outside interference.

Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians trekked for hours toward their homes in northern Gaza on Monday, nearly 16 months after Israel launched an offensive there in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks.

During a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas, with fragile hopes for an end to the war, relief is soon weighed down by sorrow.

Simona Halperin said she was happy at the news of the release of the first three female Israeli citizens under the cease-fire agreement on January 19

DAVOS - The Israel-Hamas war has put back development in Gaza by 60 years and mobilising the tens of billions of dollars needed for reconstruction will be an uphill task, the United Nations said.

Russia's UN Ambassador said the US ignored its calls for a meeting on Gazan children in December. Read more at straitstimes.com.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen called Tuesday for the bloc to "deepen" ties with China and boost relations with India, while taking a "pragmatic" approach with Donald Trump's combative new US ...

Tens of thousands of Palestinians began arriving in northern Gaza, months after Israel ordered them out. The Israel-Hamas cease-fire was holding after faltering over the weekend.

Israel kept thousands of Palestinians from returning to their homes in northern Gaza on Sunday as it accused Hamas of violating a fragile ceasefire by changing the order of hostages it has released. Local health officials said Israeli forces fired on the crowd,