Middle East

‘Highest level of readiness’: Troops prepare after Hamas delays next hostage release and accuses Israel of violating a ceasefire agreement.

Israeli hostages released as part of the cease fire agreement have begun to give accounts of their horrific ordeal at the hands of Hamas. But their stories are tinged with hope for the future.

Donald Trump has compared the appearance of the recently released hostages to Holocaust survivors, saying he's losing patience with the ceasefire deal.

Egypt will host an emergency Arab summit in coming weeks to discuss President Donald Trump's ‘dangerous’ idea to resettle Palestinians from Gaza.

The release of three Israeli civilians from captivity by Hamas was bittersweet for families who were horrified by the pale, emaciated figures they saw on TV.

Hamas has named the three next Israeli hostages to be released, but claims Israel is delaying the delivery of food, aid and shelter, in breach of the ceasefire.

US President Donald Trump says ‘no US soldiers would be needed’ to take over the Gaza Strip and turn it into ‘the Riviera of the Middle East’.

DAVE SHARMA: I do not expect to see a Trump Tower in Gaza City in my lifetime. But Trump’s intent to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy, given its dismal record of failure? This should be taken seriously.

CAMERON MILNER: Trump’s Gaza intervention has changed the conversation. It demands a serious response once the Trump-hating blowhards have run out of breath. And it’s all about the art of the deal.

LATIKA M BOURKE: Mr Albanese’s timid reaction to Donald Trump’s bold plan to ‘level’ and take over Gaza once again leaves him looking either limp and adrift on a key moral question or out of his depth. 

Peter Dutton says President Donald Trump's suggestion that the US ‘level’ and takeover the Gaza Strip, relocating Palestinians elsewhere is shrewd.

US President Donald Trump's top diplomat and his main spokesperson are walking back the idea that he wants the permanent relocation of Palestinians from Gaza.

AARON PATRICK: Donald Trump’s not the first US president to think he can bring peace to Israel. But none have tried to do it with a plan quite so aggressive.

JACKSON HEWETT: Fresh off a game of non-consensual Russian roulette with his nearest and dearest neighbours, Donald Trump has taken aim at a new target. But he could have bigger goals in his sights.

Donald Trump has laid out how he plans to bring peace to the Middle East by ‘levelling’ and taking ownership of Gaza, one of the most contested pieces of land the world.