Cease-fire Deal

Noam Or, 17, and his 13-year-old sister Alma were released together on Saturday as part of the cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.

The Trump administration is preparing to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan in exchange for concessions from the Taliban, including a cease-fire and a renunciation of al-Qaida, as part of an initial deal to end the nearly 18-year-old war, U.S. officials say.

The United States and Russia agreed Friday to the renewal of a cease-fire in Syria, to begin Monday with the cessation of all air and ground attacks by all parties, including the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have agreed to keep up negotiations over a cease-fire agreement for Syria, a senior Obama administration official said today.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused Ukrainian's government of dragging its feet on implementing last year's cease-fire agreement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke Wednesday with key players in the Syria conflict, including President Bashar Assad, ahead of a US-Russia-engineered cease-fire, as the opposition voiced concerns that the truce due to begin later this week will only benefit the Syrian government.

An attack on a passenger bus in eastern Ukraine killed 12 people on Tuesday, likely dealing the final blow to hopes that a short-lived and shaky cease-fire could take hold.

The French president will meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in the coming days, amid renewed Western concern about violence in Ukraine and mounting Russian pressure on France over a stalled warship deal.

Government and rebel forces early on Friday exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in Ukraine, as part of a cease-fire agreement sealed earlier this month.

Government and rebel forces have exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in Ukraine as part of a cease-fire agreement sealed earlier this month.

Ukraine and the pro-Russian separatists appeared increasingly close to signing a deal to end four months of fighting, as NATO leaders including President Barack Obama expressed support for Ukraine at a NATO summit Thursday.

The office of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says he and Russian President Vladimir Putin have reached agreement on a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine's president said Wednesday that Vladimir Putin accepts the principles of a peace plan for Ukraine but the Russian leader insisted that only Kiev can reach a cease-fire deal with the pro-Moscow separatists.

Hours past midnight on Thursday, US Secretary of State John Kerry was still working the phones, trying to come up with a cease-fire plan to stop the bloodshed in the Gaza Strip. He'd been pushing for a deal all day - in fact, for more than a week - and nailing down a final agreement was proving elusive.

Israel-Hamas fighting looked headed for escalation after US Secretary of State John Kerry failed Friday to broker a weeklong truce as a first step toward a broader deal and Israel's defense minister warned Israel might soon expand its Gaza ground operation "significantly."

Noam Or, 17, and his 13-year-old sister Alma were released together on Saturday as part of the cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.

The Trump administration is preparing to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan in exchange for concessions from the Taliban, including a cease-fire and a renunciation of al-Qaida, as part of an initial deal to end the nearly 18-year-old war, U.S. officials say.

The United States and Russia agreed Friday to the renewal of a cease-fire in Syria, to begin Monday with the cessation of all air and ground attacks by all parties, including the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have agreed to keep up negotiations over a cease-fire agreement for Syria, a senior Obama administration official said today.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused Ukrainian's government of dragging its feet on implementing last year's cease-fire agreement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke Wednesday with key players in the Syria conflict, including President Bashar Assad, ahead of a US-Russia-engineered cease-fire, as the opposition voiced concerns that the truce due to begin later this week will only benefit the Syrian government.

An attack on a passenger bus in eastern Ukraine killed 12 people on Tuesday, likely dealing the final blow to hopes that a short-lived and shaky cease-fire could take hold.

The French president will meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in the coming days, amid renewed Western concern about violence in Ukraine and mounting Russian pressure on France over a stalled warship deal.

Government and rebel forces early on Friday exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in Ukraine, as part of a cease-fire agreement sealed earlier this month.

Government and rebel forces have exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in Ukraine as part of a cease-fire agreement sealed earlier this month.

Ukraine and the pro-Russian separatists appeared increasingly close to signing a deal to end four months of fighting, as NATO leaders including President Barack Obama expressed support for Ukraine at a NATO summit Thursday.

The office of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says he and Russian President Vladimir Putin have reached agreement on a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine's president said Wednesday that Vladimir Putin accepts the principles of a peace plan for Ukraine but the Russian leader insisted that only Kiev can reach a cease-fire deal with the pro-Moscow separatists.

Hours past midnight on Thursday, US Secretary of State John Kerry was still working the phones, trying to come up with a cease-fire plan to stop the bloodshed in the Gaza Strip. He'd been pushing for a deal all day - in fact, for more than a week - and nailing down a final agreement was proving elusive.

Israel-Hamas fighting looked headed for escalation after US Secretary of State John Kerry failed Friday to broker a weeklong truce as a first step toward a broader deal and Israel's defense minister warned Israel might soon expand its Gaza ground operation "significantly."