Hamas
Mediators seek a new deal to release more than half of the hostages in Gaza
President Trump's Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff is taking part in ceasefire talks in Qatar, the most serious Israel-Hamas talks since Trump took office.
Hamas is offering a truce with Israel for five to ten years, a U.S. official says
President Trump's hostage affairs envoy, Adam Boehler, says a new Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal could happen "within weeks," as he defends his direct talks with Hamas.
In a policy shift, U.S. and Hamas say they’re in direct talks on hostages
A Hamas official tells NPR that the United States has held direct talks with the Palestinian militant group over the release of several American-Israeli dual citizens taken hostage during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel.
What went wrong? Israel’s spy agency lists failures in preventing Oct. 7 attack
Israel's domestic security agency had Hamas' battle plans for the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks but didn't take them seriously. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deflected responsibility for the failure.
Israeli military cites ‘fundamental misunderstanding’ of Hamas ahead of Oct. 7 attack
The report is the Israeli military's first official account of mistakes that preceded the 2023 attack, which launched Israel's subsequent war against Hamas in Gaza that killed more than 48,000 Palestinians.
Hamas returns bodies of four hostages and Israel releases hundreds of Palestinians
Both sides agreed there would be no Hamas ceremonies for the hostage bodies and in exchange Israel would release the Palestinian detainees and prisoners whose freedom had been held up since Saturday.
Israelis hold a mass funeral for Shiri Bibas and her two sons killed in Gaza
Crowds gathered in Israel for the funeral procession of the Bibas family, a mother and two young sons killed while being held hostage in Gaza. The story of their killing has enraged Israelis, and Israeli government representatives were not invited to the funeral.
Israel says body returned by Hamas not that of hostage
Israel identified the remains of child hostages but said another body from Hamas was not their mother as claimed. And near Tel Aviv, explosions hit threes buses, but no injuries were reported.
Hamas releases the bodies of four Israeli hostages, including mother and young sons
Today's release is the first time Hamas has handed over the bodies of hostages during the war, although several have been recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza and returned to Israel.
Hamas to hand over 4 Israeli hostages’ bodies Thursday and 6 living hostages Saturday
Hamas says it has agreed to Israel's request to speed up release of Israeli hostages, including two men held around a decade. The bodies of members of a young family are among those it will hand over.
Rubio is in Saudi Arabia to discuss the Gaza ceasefire and Ukraine war
After meetings in Israel, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Saudi Arabia to push President Trump's plan for Gaza and to meet with Russian counterparts on steps to ending the war in Ukraine.
Jordan’s military is test-running an air bridge for aid to Gaza
NPR traveled with Jordan's military on a recent helicopter flight delivering aid to the Gaza Strip, part of a test program since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect last month.
The next Israeli hostages Hamas will release include U.S. and Russian nationals
Hamas says it will release three hostages on Saturday, resolving a dispute with Israel that threatened to derail the ceasefire. In exchange, Israel will free dozens of Palestinians from jail.
Hamas says it will release hostages as scheduled this weekend
Israel threatened Tuesday to resume hostilities with Hamas in Gaza unless the militant group releases hostages under the ceasefire agreement.
Hamas says it’s delaying the next Israeli hostage release
A Hamas spokesman said it's postponing the release of the next group of Israeli hostages, accusing Israel of preventing Palestinians from returning home in Gaza.
3 Israeli hostages freed for Palestinian detainees and prisoners
The exchanges are part of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
A brief history of Gaza’s tortured role in the Middle East conflict
Most Gaza residents are the descendants of Palestinian refugees driven to the enclave in a 1948 war. They harbor a deep fear of being uprooted again, and President Trump's remarks struck a raw nerve.
33 hostages are expected to be released by Hamas as part of a ceasefire with Israel
There are men, women and children on the list of 33 to be released from Gaza. Two are U.S. citizens. Israel is set to free hundreds of prisoners in exchange for them.
These are the U.S. citizens held hostage in Gaza
Seven of the nearly 100 hostages held in Gaza are U.S. citizens, several of whom are confirmed dead.
Israel’s security cabinet approves Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal
Israel's security cabinet has voted to approve a ceasefire deal to end the fighting in Gaza. Full cabinet approval is expected later today.
How the Gaza war has remade the Middle East
What began as a battle between Israel and Hamas morphed into a much wider regional conflict that has reshaped much of the Middle East.
Netanyahu delays ceasefire vote, claiming Hamas created a ‘last minute crisis’
The deal was set to be ratified by Israeli Cabinet on Thursday. But Netanyahu says, without specifying, that Hamas has gone back on several parts of the ceasefire agreement at the last minute.
Israel and Hamas reach a Gaza ceasefire agreement
Israel and Hamas have reached an agreement on a multiphase ceasefire that commits them to end the war in Gaza, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman James Risch said.
Israel and Hamas are close to reaching a ceasefire agreement
Negotiators in Qatar are close to a ceasefire deal that envisions an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian detainees, a six-week pause in fighting and eventual withdrawal of troops from Gaza in the final phase.
Israel and Hamas make progress in their ceasefire and hostage release talks
Three officials said the next days would be critical for ending more than a year of fighting that has shaken the Middle East, but talks have stalled near the finish line repeatedly in the past year.
Trump in news conference says ‘all hell will break out’ if Gaza hostages not released
The president-elect made a similar pledge on social media in early December. His latest comments came during a wide-ranging news conference from Mar-a-Lago.
Hamas and Israel are negotiating the release of 34 hostages from Gaza
The deal would secure release of a third of the approximately 100 hostages who remain in Gaza, including two dual U.S.-Israeli nationals. In return, Israel would release some Palestinian prisoners.
Gaza — A Nonviolent View
Skirmishes have broken out within the tenuous cease fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. It's a situation closely watched by Jerry Levin. The former Birmingham and CNN journalist was kidnapped by Hezbollah more than 20 years ago, but since then has become involved in non-violent peace activism in the West Bank. Earlier this month we heard from a Birmingham native living in southern Israel. Now we hear from Levin, a backer of the Palestinian cause and what he calls 'assertive non-violence.' He says Americans are seeing the pain, anger and confusion felt by Palestinians. But he told WBHM's Andrew Yeager the notion that only attacks from Gaza prompted Israel's military action is not true.
From Birmingham to Israel
Margaret Duvdevani lives in an area grabbing headlines currently, but not for positive reasons. The Birmingham native graduated from college, hopped around Europe, married an Israeli and settled in Israel 30 years ago. A medical technician by training she lives in a farming community in southern Israel, three miles from the Gaza Strip. Duvdevani is visiting Birmingham this month to share her perspective on the latest clash between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. She told WBHM's Andrew Yeager this conflict is different than previous ones.
