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Israel sends negotiators after Hamas hands over hostage bodies

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dispatched negotiators to Cairo on Thursday after Hamas handed over the remains of four hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.The overnight swap was the final stage of an initial deal under the fragile truce that took effect on January 19, largely halting more than 15 months of war in Gaza.Under the first phase which expires Saturday, Hamas freed 25 living Israeli and dual-national hostages seized in its October 7, 2023 attack and returned the bodies of eight others. It also released five Thai prisoners outside the deal’s terms.Israel, in return, was expected to free around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. Hamas officials told AFP that Israel had freed about 1,700 so far.Israel’s Prison Service confirmed that “643 terrorists were transferred from several prisons across the country” and released under the terms of the truce deal after Hamas handed over the bodies of four hostages.AFP journalists saw hundreds of prisoners being released early Thursday in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Egypt’s state-linked Al-Qahera News said 97, marked for deportation by Israel, had arrived at Gaza’s Rafah crossing.After the swap Hamas called on Israel to return to delayed talks on a second phase of the deal, intended to lead to a permanent end to the war.”We have cut off the path before the enemy’s false justifications, and it has no choice but to start negotiations for the second phase,” Hamas said.Later on Thursday, Netanyahu’s office said he instructed Israeli negotiators to head to Cairo for the Gaza talks.The prisoners freed Thursday were meant to be released last weekend but Israel delayed the process after Hamas staged elaborate handover ceremonies.Hamas said Thursday’s handover would take place in private “to prevent the occupation from finding any pretext for delay”.In Ramallah, several freed Palestinians were lifted onto shoulders. A group of women wept around one released prisoner, and a child held aloft flashed victory signs with both hands.”We were in hell and we came out of hell. Today is my real day of birth,” said one prisoner, Yahya Shraideh. – ‘Very tough day’ -Hours after the handover, an Israeli campaign group confirmed “with profound sorrow” the identities of the four bodies Hamas returned on Thursday.Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, Itzik Elgarat and Shlomo Mansour “have been laid to eternal rest in Israel”, said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.Netanyahu’s office said based on “all of the information at our disposal”, Yahalomi, Idan and Elgarat “were murdered while held hostage in Gaza”.Mansour, it added, was “murdered in the 7 October 2023 massacre” which triggered the war.Israel Berman, a businessman and former member of the Nahal Oz kibbutz community where Idan was abducted, said that “until the very last moment, we were hoping that Tsachi would return to us alive”. “This morning brought us the harsh news,” he added. “It’s a very tough day.”Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas’s attack, 58 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.Ziva Hershkowitz, an administrator at a local university, said that “as Israelis, we’re still waiting for, you know, a light in the dark”.Calling for the ceasefire deal to be extended, she added: “People have to come back, really.”- ‘Our hearts ache’ -In Washington, US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy said Israeli representatives were en route to talks on the next phase of the ceasefire.”We’re making a lot of progress. Israel is sending a team right now as we speak,” Steve Witkoff said.The prospects for the second phase are far from certain, however. The current truce agreement was only arrived at after months of gruelling negotiations, and some members of Netanyahu’s coalition are eager to resume the war and destroy Hamas once and for all.Netanyahu pledged on Thursday to work “relentlessly” to bring back all the hostages.Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after the attack, the deadliest in the country’s history, and it has made bringing home all the hostages taken that day a central war aim.President Isaac Herzog said Thursday that Israel had a “moral obligation” to secure the hostages’ return.”Our hearts ache upon receiving the bitter news of the identification of” the four bodies, he said.French President Emmanuel Macron called on Hamas to stop its “barbarism”, after confirmation that French-Israeli hostage Yahalomi was among the latest bodies returned.The October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has killed at least 48,365 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures that the United Nations considers credible.

Israel dispatches negotiators after Hamas hands over hostage bodies

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dispatched negotiators to Cairo on Thursday after Hamas handed over the remains of four hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.The overnight swap was the final stage of an initial deal under the fragile truce that took effect on January 19, largely halting the Gaza war.Under the first phase, Hamas freed 25 living Israeli and dual-national hostages seized in its October 7, 2023 attack and returned the bodies of eight others. It also released five Thai prisoners outside the deal’s terms.Israel, in return, was expected to free around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. Hamas officials told AFP that Israel had freed about 1,700 so far.The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said Israel freed 596 prisoners Thursday after the bodies were handed over.It said 46 more prisoners were yet to be released in order to complete the swap — “all women and minors from Gaza” who were arrested after the war began.AFP journalists saw hundreds of prisoners being released early Thursday in Gaza and the West Bank. Egypt’s state-linked Al-Qahera News said 97, marked for deportation by Israel, had arrived at Gaza’s Rafah crossing.After the swap Hamas called on Israel to return to the negotiating table for delayed talks on a second phase of the deal, intended to lead to a permanent end to the war.”We have cut off the path before the enemy’s false justifications, and it has no choice but to start negotiations for the second phase,” Hamas said.Later on Thursday, Netanyahu’s office said he instructed Israeli negotiators to head to Cairo for the Gaza talks.The prisoners freed Thursday were meant to be released at the weekend, but Israel delayed the process after Hamas staged elaborate handover ceremonies.Hamas said Thursday’s handover would take place in private “to prevent the occupation from finding any pretext for delay”.In Ramallah, several freed Palestinians were lifted onto shoulders. A group of women wept around one released prisoner, and a child held aloft flashed victory signs with both hands.”We were in hell and we came out of hell. Today is my real day of birth,” said one prisoner, Yahya Shraideh. – ‘Very tough day’ -Hours after the handover, an Israeli pro-hostage group confirmed “with profound sorrow” the identities of the four bodies Hamas returned on Thursday.Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, Itzik Elgarat and Shlomo Mansour “have been laid to eternal rest in Israel”, said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.Netanyahu’s office said based on “all of the information at our disposal”, Yahalomi, Idan and Elgarat “were murdered while held hostage in Gaza”.Mansour, it added, was “murdered in the 7 October 2023 massacre”.Israel Berman, a businessman and former member of the Nahal Oz kibbutz where Idan was abducted, said that “until the very last moment, we were hoping that Tsachi would return to us alive”. “This morning brought us the harsh news,” he added. “It’s a very tough day.”Ziva Hershkowitz, an administrator at a local university, said that “as Israelis, we’re still waiting for, you know, a light in the dark”.Calling for the ceasefire deal to be extended, she added: “People have to come back, really.”- ‘Negotiations will begin’ -In Washington, US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy said Israeli representatives were en route to talks on the next phase of the ceasefire.”We’re making a lot of progress. Israel is sending a team right now as we speak,” Steve Witkoff said.The prospects for the second phase are far from certain, however. The current truce agreement was only arrived at after months of gruelling negotiations, and some members of Netanyahu’s coalition are eager to resume the war and destroy Hamas once and for all.Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack, 58 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.Netanyahu pledged on Thursday to work “relentlessly” to bring back all the hostages.Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after the attack, the deadliest in the country’s history, and it has made bringing home all the hostages taken that day a central war aim.President Isaac Herzog said Thursday that Israel had a “moral obligation” to secure the hostages’ return.”Our hearts ache upon receiving the bitter news of the identification of” the four bodies, he said.French President Emmanuel Macron called on Hamas to stop its “barbarism”, after confirmation that French-Israeli hostage Yahalomi was among four bodies returned.The October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has killed at least 48,365 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures that the United Nations considers credible.

Dubai dwellers take desert camping to skyscraper city

On a patch of city land beside the sea, urban Emiratis sit beneath the shimmering skyscrapers of wealthy Dubai, revamping a camping tradition rooted in the desert.Dozens of camper trailers are lined up, with simple facilities set up in the open air against a backdrop featuring the world’s tallest building, the needle-like Burj Khalifa — a symbol of the ostentatious lifestyles and consumerism associated with the city.Khaled al-Kaissi, 38, is among the minority of the population — around 10 percent — who are native Emiratis.In the United Arab Emirates, foreign labour largely from Asia is cheaply available, including for household help, to the benefit of many locals.But “sometimes you need simple things”, like preparing your own cup of tea, he said, voicing a desire for “simplicity and humility”.On the sandy ground, some visitors at the makeshift urban camping site have set up rugs and cushions to create a “majlis”, a type of communal living room traditional in the Gulf.Others sit in regular camping chairs.Like many countries on the Arabian Peninsula, the United Arab Emirates was largely undeveloped before the discovery of oil in the late 1950s.Less rich in hydrocarbons than other UAE emirates, Dubai became a regional leader in economic diversification. It turned itself into an ultra-modern metropolis, a regional business and financial centre, and a popular destination with grandiose attractions.Despite the rapid transformation of their way of life and the influx of expatriates, Emiratis remain attached to their camping culture — when temperatures drop enough for them to comfortably avoid air-conditioned shopping centres, that is.It is a tradition tied to their Bedouin ancestors.”The idea comes from our great-great-grandparents because they used to live in the desert… and they passed down this tradition to us,” said Wissam Hamad Skandarani, 33, a Palestinian-American with an Emirati mother.Under the stars, he was getting ready to watch a football match on television.Skandarani is in the habit of spending weekends camping in the desert, but since he found this spot a month ago he’s been coming every evening. Here, he meets his friends after work in Dubai’s financial district just a few minutes away.”You have the city, and the beach in front of you. And you have the view,” he said. “You’re in heaven.”- ‘Surreal’ -Ahmed Rashed al-Ali came from the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah to camp with his friends.Since buying his camper three years ago, Ali has taken it to cities across the UAE and also elsewhere in the Gulf.”We used to put up the tent in one spot but the mobile home has modernised camping. You move around, one day in the mountains, one day at the beach, another in the desert,” he said.Ali and others know full well that their camping spot likely won’t be spared from Dubai’s frenetic construction for long.Authorities ignore them as long as the improvised camping sites are clean and well organised, said Mohammed Chammas, 46, a factory owner.”But we are waiting for the time they come and tell us that something is going to be built and they ask us to move on,” he said.In the meantime, visitors travelling with a camper van pass along via the internet the secret of this striking view of the Burj Khalifa — which tourists staying in city hotels would likely pay a lot for.Sophie Ullrich, a 34-year-old German, has criss-crossed the deserts of the Gulf with her husband in their 4×4 converted into a camper van.They, like the Emiratis, also found themselves at the unofficial campground in Dubai.”Being here was special,” she said. “We were sitting there in front of the car… looking at the skyline, having our Toyota in the background, and it felt so surreal.”

Hamas calls on Israel to start talks for next phase of truce

Hamas called on Israel Thursday to enter negotiations for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire after the group handed over the bodies of four hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.The swap, undertaken under cover of night, was the last in an initial series agreed under the terms of the fragile truce, which took effect on January 19 and largely halted the war in Gaza.Under the first phase of the deal, Hamas freed 25 living hostages and returned to Israel the bodies of eight others, some of them dual nationals.Israel, in return, was expected to free around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners, among them women and minors, in staggered releases.The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said Israel had freed 596 prisoners in exchange for the bodies on Thursday.It said 46 prisoners were yet to be released to complete the swap — “all women and minors from Gaza” who were arrested after the war began.In Gaza and the West Bank, AFP journalists saw hundreds of prisoners being released early Thursday, and Egypt’s state-linked Al-Qahera News said 97 of them who were marked for deportation by Israeli authorities had arrived on the Egyptian side of Gaza’s Rafah border crossing.Negotiations for a second phase of the deal, which is meant to lead to a permanent end to the war, have yet to begin.”We have cut off the path before the enemy’s false justifications, and it has no choice but to start negotiations for the second phase,” Hamas said on Telegram.The Palestinian prisoners released Thursday were supposed to have been freed at the weekend, but Israel stopped the process following outrage over elaborate ceremonies Hamas had been holding to hand over hostages seized in its unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack.Several of the Palestinians released to Ramallah were hoisted in the air on arrival, some of them conducting interviews from the shoulders of friends or relatives.A group of women broke into tears as they gathered around one released prisoner, and a child held aloft made victory signs with both hands.Earlier, Hamas said the return of the four Israeli bodies would take place in private “to prevent the occupation from finding any pretext for delay or obstruction”.Hours after the coffins were handed over, an Israeli group advocating for the release of all hostages from Gaza confirmed “with profound sorrow” the identities of the four bodies Hamas returned on Thursday.Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, Itzik Elgarat and Shlomo Mansour “have been laid to eternal rest in Israel”, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.- ‘Negotiations will begin’ -In Washington, US President Donald Trump’s top envoy to the Middle East said Israeli representatives were en route to talks on the next phase of the ceasefire.”We’re making a lot of progress. Israel is sending a team right now as we speak,” Steve Witkoff told an event for the American Jewish Committee.”It’s either going to be in Doha or in Cairo, where negotiations will begin again with the Egyptians and the Qataris.”Israel has yet to comment on Witkoff’s remarks regarding talks for a second phase, which should also see the release of dozens of hostages still being held by militants.Despite the ceasefire, there have been sporadic incidents of violence in Gaza.The Israeli military said it carried out air strikes on several launch sites after a projectile was fired from there on Wednesday, though the munition fell short inside the Palestinian territory.- ‘Our hearts ache’ -Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after its October 7, 2023 attack, the deadliest in the country’s history, and it has made bringing back all the hostages taken that day a central war aim.President Isaac Herzog said Thursday that Israel had a “moral obligation” to bring back all hostages from Gaza captivity.”Our hearts ache upon receiving the bitter news of the identification of” the four bodies, he said.French President Emmanuel Macron Thursday called on Hamas to stop its “barbarism” after confirmation that French-Israeli hostage Yahalomi was among four bodies returned.Macron said on X that he shared the “immense pain” of Yahalomi’s family, adding that “France lost 50 of its children in the October 7 abomination”.The October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,215 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has killed at least 48,348 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures that the United Nations considers credible.