Palestinian Prisoners

Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt's president said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians across the enclave.

Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, was released by Israel in 2011 as part of a major prisoner swap deal that involved the release of 1,027 Palestinian and Israeli Arab prisoners in exchange for a single Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.

For Hamas, the hostages are key bargaining chips to negotiate a truce with Israel and seek the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

A wounded Palestinian prisoner has died in an Israeli hospital, two Palestinian organisations said.

A Palestinian prisoners watchdog said Tuesday that a man shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank the previous day had been freed during the November truce in the Gaza war.

The United States on Wednesday urged Israel to investigate and implement accountability after a video appeared to show soldiers sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner.

After a career in the shadows, spent in Israeli prisons and the internal security apparatus of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar has emerged as leader of the Palestinian group in the middle of a full-blown war.

After weeks of Israeli bombardment left them with nowhere else to go, hundreds of Palestinians have ended up in a former Gaza prison built to hold murderers and thieves.

Israel released the head of Gaza's biggest hospital, who had been detained for more than seven months, among dozens of Palestinian prisoners returned Monday to the besieged territory for treatment.

Hamas has presented a Gaza ceasefire proposal to mediators and the US that includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for freedom for Palestinian prisoners, 100 of whom are serving life sentences, according to a proposal seen by Reuters.

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has received a draft proposal from Gaza truce talks in Paris for a pause in military operations and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages, a senior source close to the talks said on Tuesday.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas pressed the group Hamas on Wednesday to agree a Gaza deal quickly to avoid "dire consequences", the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Fourteen-year-old Abdelrahman al-Zaghal was one of the youngest Palestinians released by Israel in exchange for hostages seized during the Oct. 7 Hamas-led raid on Israel.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh is set to visit Egypt Wednesday for talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange with Israel, a source close to the Palestinian militant group said.

Israeli and Qatari officials were set to meet in Norway on Saturday in an effort to revive talks about the release of hostages held in Gaza in return for a ceasefire and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel,

Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt's president said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians across the enclave.

Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, was released by Israel in 2011 as part of a major prisoner swap deal that involved the release of 1,027 Palestinian and Israeli Arab prisoners in exchange for a single Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.

For Hamas, the hostages are key bargaining chips to negotiate a truce with Israel and seek the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

A wounded Palestinian prisoner has died in an Israeli hospital, two Palestinian organisations said.

A Palestinian prisoners watchdog said Tuesday that a man shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank the previous day had been freed during the November truce in the Gaza war.

The United States on Wednesday urged Israel to investigate and implement accountability after a video appeared to show soldiers sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner.

After a career in the shadows, spent in Israeli prisons and the internal security apparatus of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar has emerged as leader of the Palestinian group in the middle of a full-blown war.

After weeks of Israeli bombardment left them with nowhere else to go, hundreds of Palestinians have ended up in a former Gaza prison built to hold murderers and thieves.

Israel released the head of Gaza's biggest hospital, who had been detained for more than seven months, among dozens of Palestinian prisoners returned Monday to the besieged territory for treatment.

Hamas has presented a Gaza ceasefire proposal to mediators and the US that includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for freedom for Palestinian prisoners, 100 of whom are serving life sentences, according to a proposal seen by Reuters.

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has received a draft proposal from Gaza truce talks in Paris for a pause in military operations and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages, a senior source close to the talks said on Tuesday.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas pressed the group Hamas on Wednesday to agree a Gaza deal quickly to avoid "dire consequences", the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Fourteen-year-old Abdelrahman al-Zaghal was one of the youngest Palestinians released by Israel in exchange for hostages seized during the Oct. 7 Hamas-led raid on Israel.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh is set to visit Egypt Wednesday for talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange with Israel, a source close to the Palestinian militant group said.

Israeli and Qatari officials were set to meet in Norway on Saturday in an effort to revive talks about the release of hostages held in Gaza in return for a ceasefire and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel,