Netanyahu says there will be war if hostages not returned
IDF deploys troop reinforcements in South • Trump, Jordan's King meet and discuss future of Gazans
ZAKA sends warning to Hamas: 'We were in hell, now it's your turn'
This came shortly after Hamas announced it was suspending Gaza hostage releases until further notice, citing alleged Israeli violations.
In an unusual move, ZAKA addressed Hamas in a message in Arabic on X on Tuesday, saying, "Hamas - we were in hell, now it's your turn."
Go to the full article >>Strained relations: Egypt's Sisi cancels trip to US after Trump aid threats - report
Sisi was originally meant to visit Washington on February 18 but has been delayed due to Cairo's opposition to US President Donald Trump's plans to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's visit to Washington has been postponed indefinitely, according to Al Arabiya on Tuesday.
Go to the full article >>Smotrich to Netanyahu – ‘give the order’ to conquer Gaza, expel civilians
"The responsibility lies with Netanyahu, who is again delaying, again harming the process, again abandoning the hostages," Lapid said.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday evening to “give the order” to conquer Gaza and remove its citizens, if Hamas did not comply with an ultimatum to return all of the remaining Israeli hostages before noon on Saturday.
“Mr. Prime Minister, I urge you, following such a moral, simple, and clear statement by President Trump, to inform Hamas unequivocally: either all the hostages are released by Saturday - no more phases, no more games, or the gates of hell will be opened on them,” the finance minister said in a video statement.
Go to the full article >>Trump tells Jordanian king that US will 'take Gaza,' Palestinians will live safely elsewhere
He also said that he did not think Hamas would make the Saturday deadline for hostage release, and if they fail to do so, “all bets are off.”
President Donald Trump told Jordan's King Abdullah that the US is going "to take Gaza" in a meeting between the two on Tuesday.
"Palestinians will live safely in another location that is not Gaza," he said, adding that the US wasn't going to buy Gaza but rather "run it very properly."
Go to the full article >>Netanyahu: Saturday noon deadline for hostages' return, or war resumes
Netanyahu detailed Israel's next steps following the conclusion of the political and security cabinet meeting.
If Hamas does not release the hostages by Saturday at noon, the hostage-ceasefire deal will end, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.
Netanyahu detailed Israel's next steps following the conclusion of the political and security cabinet meeting, which convened Tuesday early afternoon to discuss Hamas's breach of the hostage-ceasefire deal.
Go to the full article >>Israeli source: No phase II talks until all hostages returned
This comes following the conclusion of the security cabinet meeting which convened to discuss Hamas's threat to end the hostage deal.
There will be no second phase of hostage-ceasefire deal talks until all hostages are returned, a source said on Tuesday.
The source added that the cabinet expects all nine hostages scheduled to be released in the first phase of the deal to be released in the coming days.
If three hostages are released on Saturday, as initially scheduled, the ceasefire will continue, a political source told reporters Tuesday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to detail Israel's next steps following the conclusion of the political and security cabinet meeting, which convened Tuesday early afternoon to discuss Hamas's threat to end the hostage deal.
The cabinet meeting lasted four and a half hours.
Go to the full article >>'Hamas threatened to shoot her, other hostages,' released hostage Agam Berger's grandfather says
“Every day they thought they would be killed,” he recounted, adding that his granddaughter was injured and received no treatment.
Hamas terrorists threatened to shoot Agam Berger and other hostages if Israeli forces approached where they were being held, Berger's grandfather, Aharon, told Walla in a Tuesday interview, about a week and a half after his granddaughter's release.
He also accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of deliberately delaying the hostage deal. Berger was kidnapped alongside former hostages Karina Ariev, Naama Levy, Daniella Gilboa, and Liri Albag. Berger was only released a few days after the other four.
Go to the full article >>'For every hostage harmed, Israel will take 5% of Gaza,' Smotrich says
“There is currently a debate about whether the war can be stopped. The war cannot be stopped just before the complete destruction of Hamas," smotrich said.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that Israel has full backing from former US President Donald Trump for a policy linking Gaza annexation to harm inflicted on Israeli hostages and reiterated his opposition to drafting Haredim into the IDF while speaking at the Institute for Haredi Strategy and Policy on Monday,
Smotrich argued that Israel should cut off electricity, water, and humanitarian aid to Gaza while warning Hamas that “every hostage who is harmed” would result in Israel applying sovereignty over “5% of Gaza.” He reiterated, “We have full backing” for this policy, citing Trump’s support.
Smotrich suggested that Hamas be presented with a clear ultimatum: “Once the war resumes, all the released terrorists must be re-arrested. This would take very little time, and a very simple message must be conveyed: for every hostage harmed, on that same day, we will apply sovereignty over 5% of Gaza. Another hostage, another 5%, and we have full backing from President Trump on this matter.”
Go to the full article >>Does Trump know what he's doing? Expert gives insight to Trump's Middle East plans - interview
JINSA Vice President for Policy Blaise Misztal warns that Trump's plans for the Middle East may not account for the region's complex interconnected challenges.
"The Middle East is experiencing a turning point," explained Blaise Misztal in an interview with Maariv regarding the US policy for the region under US President Donald Trump.
Misztal, who previously served as a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and as the director of the Bipartisan Policy Center's National Security Program, currently works as vice president of policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA). This organization promotes US security interests in the Middle East and touts that Israel is the most vital US security partner in the 21st century.
Trump's approach to the Middle East
Misztal explained that Trump views issues through the lens of deals and negotiations but often addresses each topic separately rather than connecting them into a comprehensive regional strategy. This, he explained, is a problem.
Go to the full article >>'We held onto hope': Family mourns murdered Israeli-Iraqi captive Shlomo Mantzur
Shlomo Mantzur’s daughter-in-law, Hannah Mantzur, voiced her disappointment, saying, “We had hoped he would be released in this phase, but unfortunately, that didn’t happen.”
“We thought he would come back, but God had other plans," Hadassah Lazar, sister of Shlomo Mantzur, who was confirmed to be killed in Hamas captivity told KAN's Reshet Bet on Tuesday.
"I always said he gave me strength with his smile and his bright eyes. It’s hard to accept that he has been gone since October 7, that he was killed on the very first day," Lazar said.
The IDF informed the family that intelligence indicated Shlomo was murdered on October 7 during his abduction.
Go to the full article >>Israel at war: What you need to know
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza.
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 at the Re'im music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities.
- 76 hostages remain in Gaza.
- 49 hostages in total have been killed in captivity, IDF says.
- The IDF launched a ground invasion of Lebanon on September 30.
- The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire came into effect on November 27 at 4:00 a.m.
- Netanyahu confirmed the first phase of the Israel-Hamas Ceasefire on January 17, 2025
- 735 terrorists will be released as part of the hostage deal