US President Donald Trump told CNN that Israeli forces could resume fighting in Gaza “as soon as I say the word” if Hamas won’t uphold the ceasefire deal, including disarmament. But the US does not believe Hamas is violating the deal by failing to produce the remains of hostages, two senior US advisers said.
Bodies of 30 deceased Palestinians arrive in Gaza, with some showing ‘signs of abuse,’ health ministry says
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said it received a further 30 bodies of deceased Palestinians on Thursday, some of which “show signs of abuse, beating, handcuffing, and blindfolding.” It’s unclear how or when the Palestinians died.
Video shows the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) transporting the bodies, which had been held by Israel during the war, back into Gaza.
It comes after the bodies of 90 deceased Palestinians were transferred in two groups from Israel to the Nasser Medical Complex on Tuesday and Wednesday, bringing the total number of returned bodies to 120, according to the health ministry. Many of the deceased remain unidentified, and the ministry has posted photos of the bodies on a special website to enable family members to identify the remains.
The bodies transferred to the hospital on Tuesday arrived at the facility with their hands and legs cuffed, according to Nasser hospital. CNN is unable to independently verify the claim. The remains were being held in refrigerators in Israel and came with numbers marking them, rather than names, the hospital said.
CNN has reached out to Israeli authorities about the earlier claims of abuse.
.jpg)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his country will not let up in its fight against terror, in a speech to commemorate Israeli civilians killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks.
“Our fight against terror will continue with full force. We will not allow evil to raise its head. We will exact the full price from anyone who harms us,” Netanyahu said, following a service for fallen soldiers.
“At the same time, we will continue to build our country with tremendous momentum,” he added. “Those who are deluded enough to think they can uproot us from our homeland will again discover the strength of our determination to add life, deepen roots, and secure the building of our land for generations to come.”
In a speech laden with religious references, Netanyahu also said Israel is “investing huge sums” to restore communities that are near Gaza and prioritizing efforts to return residents to impacted communities.
“More than 90% of the residents have returned to most of the affected communities, but we are not satisfied with that. We will bring new families there, we will spur growth, we will fulfill the Biblical mission from the Book of Nehemiah — ‘rise up and rebuild’ — and we will strengthen their hands for good,” he said.
The prime minister also announced his government is “advancing the establishment of a national memorial hall for victims of terror — and we will build that hall right here” in Jerusalem.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes an address to commemorate fallen Israeli soldiers on Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes an address to commemorate fallen Israeli soldiers on Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country will “achieve all the goals of this war” and warned “the struggle is not over,” just days after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
In an address to commemorate fallen Israeli soldiers on Thursday, when Israel is marking the anniversary of the October 7 attacks as the Jewish holiday of Sukkot fell on the earlier date, Netanyahu insisted that Israel is fighting on the front lines in the region.
“Anyone who raises his hand against us already knows that he will pay a very heavy price for his aggression. We are determined to complete the victory, a victory that will shape the course of our lives for many years,” Netanyahu said.
The Israeli military intensified fighting on multiple fronts in the region following the Hamas-led October 7 attacks – launching strikes on Iran, in Lebanon and Syria.
“Great challenges still lie ahead, from enemies seeking to rearm. Great challenges — and alongside them, dramatic opportunities to expand the circle of peace,” he added.
Sticking points in the US-led ceasefire plan have emerged, including whether Hamas will agree to disarm, how a proposed international stabilization force will operate, and whether Israel will withdraw from Gaza.
Earlier this week, Israeli and Hamas officials released more than 1,700 Palestinians who Israel held without charge, 250 Palestinian prisoners and 20 remaining living hostages. But in Israel, some of that relief has been eclipsed by anger over Hamas’ delayed release of deceased hostages.
Netanyahu once again pledged to “bring back all the hostages” on Thursday.
Two years of Israeli bombing have razed swathes of Gaza, complicating efforts to retrieve some of the bodies of deceased hostages – and to recover tens of thousands of Palestinians from under the debris.
The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City said that “there has been no change in the situation” for hospitals in the Gaza Strip, which are still facing a shortage of many medicines and medical supplies.
“There is a severe shortage of medications for chronic diseases, and no chemotherapy is available for cancer patients. There are also no medicines for dialysis patients,” hospital Director Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya told CNN.
“Malnutrition among children under five continues, and no therapeutic nutrition supplies have been delivered,” Abu Salmiya said.
“There is a serious shortage of laboratory and imaging equipment, as well as a lack of surgical drugs and supplies, particularly for orthopedic, vascular, neurosurgery, and cardiac surgeries, in addition to the absence of cardiac catheterization supplies,” the doctor added.
The World Health Organization said it has been “scaling up deliveries of medical supplies to health facilities” since the ceasefire went into effect. The WHO said it has dispatched more than 220 pallets of essential medicines and medical supplies to aid delivery partners that support hospitals across Gaza.
The WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said some of those stocks — three trucks of surgical and essential medical supplies — will be transferred to Al-Shifa Hospital.
“We call for sustained access and donor support to continue, so we can ensure Gaza’s health system’s rehabilitation,” Tedros said in a social media post.
But Abu Salmiya told CNN that “unfortunately, these are only very basic medical consumables” like syringes, gloves and catheters, and the supplies do not cover “the severe shortage of many essential medicines, especially those for cancer and chronic diseases,” nor the urgent need for lab equipment.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said the recovery of all Israeli hostage remains will be a challenge that takes time because of the compromised conditions on the ground in Gaza.
“Collecting the remains will take some time because they are under rubble and you have a lot of explosive materials, devices under the rubble. So reaching them will be a bit difficult. But we are doing our utmost,” he told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.
The difficulty in accessing the remains has been clear since ceasefire negotiations began in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh, said Abdelatty. Egypt is a key mediator in Gaza ceasefire talks.
He said Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi “spoke very openly that there are some impediments on the ground and we need to do extra efforts to find, discover and collect the remains of the bodies.”
The foreign minister also reiterated the need to deliver aid into the enclave for the ceasefire plan to advance effectively.
“We are expecting the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, and the opening up of the crossings, as soon as possible. That’s very important.”
“We need literally to flood Gaza with food and with relief and materials,” He said, adding that the toll of the war is felt across the region.
Abdelatty said he expects the second phase of negotiations to be tough but added that he believes an agreement to be achievable so long as all members of the international community, including US President Donald Trump, remain engaged.
The Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza remains closed to trucks and people as a dispute over the return of deceased hostages continues.
The crossing was set to open to civilian traffic in both directions as part of the ceasefire agreement, but Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), said on Thursday that the date of the opening “will be announced at a later stage.”
Although Reuters video has shown trucks lined up at the Rafah crossing, COGAT said the checkpoint is only for the passage of people.
“It should be emphasized that humanitarian aid will not pass through the Rafah Crossing. This was never agreed upon at any stage,” said COGAT in a statement.
“Preparations for the opening of the Rafah Crossing for the movement of people are ongoing in full coordination between Israel and Egypt, in accordance with the signed agreement.”
Instead, humanitarian aid has crossed into Gaza through checkpoints in Israel. But instead of the agreed upon 600 trucks, only 300 entered on Wednesday, according to an Israeli official, as a way of pressuring Hamas to turn over the bodies of more deceased hostages.
Israel is considering further measures against Hamas, such as more restrictions on aid or reoccupying the Netzarim corridor, which splits Gaza between north and south.