Egypt Financial News

Israel and Hamas appeared to be back on track Sunday after the release of a second group of militant-held hostages and Palestinians from Israeli prisons, and Egypt said it had received new lists for an expected third release. In a separate development, Hamas announced Sunday that one of its top commanders had been killed, without saying when or how. Israel's military confirmed it.

According to the Palestinian health ministry, six Palestinians, including one minor, were shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank late Saturday and early Sunday.

HAMAS murdered and kidnapped 1,400 people on October 7th it triggered the biggest Middle East crisis in a decade and a brutal war in Gaza. On November 24th a small number of the roughly 240 captives tasted freedom again amid a four-day truce in the fighting. Israeli officials confirmed that 13 Israeli hostages had been handed over to the Red Cross; the authorities in Qatar said another 11 captives, ten holding Thai passports and one from the Philippines, were being released.

Gaza, as a pause in fighting allows aid to enter the besieged coastal territory. Another 200 trucks had been dispatched to the Gaza Strip from Nitzana, Israel, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement, with 187 of them having made it past the border by the early evening local time. Eleven ambulances, three coaches and a flatbed were delivered to Al-Shifa hospital, which had seen heavy fighting in recent days, «to assist with evacuations,» the statement said. «The longer the pause lasts, the more aid humanitarian agencies will be able to send in and across Gaza,» it added, thanking the Palestinian and Egyptian Red Crescent groups. The day prior, when a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas began in order to facilitate the hostage and prisoner exchange, a total of 137 trucks had delivered aid in Gaza, according to the UN. «We welcome the release of more hostages today and renew our call for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,» the OCHA said. «And we hope the release of more Palestinian detainees brings relief to their families and loved ones.» Exchanges continued into early Sunday, local time, with Hamas expected to free a total of 50 hostages during the four-day truce in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, under an agreement brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States. Hamas fighters snatched around 240 people when they broke through Gaza's militarized border with Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 Israelis and foreigners, according to Israeli authorities. Following the deadliest attack in its history, Israel launched an air, artillery and naval bombardment alongside a ground offensive to destroy Hamas, killing nearly 15,000 people,

Hamas in Gaza have released a second batch of Israeli and foreign hostages, exchanging them for Palestinian prisoners. Israeli authorities confirmed the return of 13 Israelis and four Thai citizens.

By Bassam Masoud and Maayan Lubell

Gaza Strip. Egyptian security sources said they had received the names of 14 Israeli women and children from Hamas and were waiting for more details on when the hostages would be handed over to Egyptian authorities. Israeli security officials were reviewing the list, though the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not confirm the number or timing of the expected release. Among those freed on Friday was nine-year-old Ohad Munder, who ran down a hospital corridor into his father's open arms, footage released by the hospital showed. He and three other children released at the same time were in relatively good condition, Gilat Livni, the centre's director of Paediatrics told reporters.

India, South Africa and Egypt have told the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that the informal discussions on dispute settlement reforms — initiated and led by the US last year — are not a substitute for multilateral talks and favour the participation of the resource-rich delegations. In a submission to WTO on Friday, they said such a process has resulted in «differential access of delegations to the evolving text and discussions». Informal discussions do not allow for virtual participation of capital-based officials, which hinders the involvement of the developing and the least developed countries (LDCs), they said. «The drafting process deviates substantially from the accepted practice at the WTO,» the three countries said, adding that the «format and pace of the discussions have made it challenging» for most developing countries to effectively participate, consult with capitals, present their views, submit comprehensive proposals and review the progress. WTO's informal talks on dispute settlement reforms began in April 2022. «More developing countries should join hands and raise their voice against this informal process as well as other issues, otherwise the outcome may not be in their interest,» said Abhijit Das, an expert on WTO issues. The three nations pointed out that the informal meetings often overlap with formal WTO meetings and negotiations, the composition of the drafting groups has not been made public, members cannot submit their own textual submissions on any aspect that is of importance to them, and the allocation of topics and responsibilities in the drafting groups is done by the volunteer convenor. This lack of record-keeping creates information asymmetry and has resulted in differential access

Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades said the hostage releases would be delayed if Israel did not adhere to the agreed terms for the release of Palestinian prisoners. There was no immediate Israeli response to the statement. Earlier an Israeli military spokesperson had told France's BFM television station that, barring last minute changes, 13 Israeli hostages were expected to be freed. He said 39 Palestinian prisoners would be released in return. Under the truce deal between Israel and Hamas, mediated by Qatar, a total of 50 hostages are to be exchanged for 150 Palestinian prisoners, some of them convicted on weapon charges and violent offences, over four days. In the first exchange on Friday, 13 Israeli women and children — out of around 240 hostages captured by Hamas fighters on a killing spree in southern Israel on Oct.

Gaza Strip for the first time in seven weeks, with more hostages set to freed. The following is a timeline of the war between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement that controls the Gaza Strip. Oct. 7: Hamas gunmen launch a surprise attack on southern Israel, crossing over from Gaza and rampaging through towns. Israel says the gunmen kill 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and take more than 240 hostages. Hamas military commander Mohammad Deif announces on Hamas media that the attack has started and urges Palestinians everywhere to fight. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is «at war» and retaliatory air strikes against Hamas-run Gaza begin, along with a total siege of the narrow coastal enclave squeezed between Israel and Egypt. Oct. 13: Israel tells residents of Gaza City, where more than 1 million of the enclave's 2.3 million people live, to evacuate and move south.

Gaza on Saturday by Palestinian militant group Hamas, officials said, following the release of 24 hostages during the first day of a planned four-day truce on Friday. Israeli security officials were reviewing the list, said a statement from the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose government promised to work toward the release of all hostages taken by Hamas in an attack on Israel on Oct. 7. The released hostages, including Israeli women and children and Thai farm workers, were transferred out of Gaza and handed over to Egyptian authorities at the Rafah border crossing, accompanied by eight staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in a four-car convoy, the ICRC said.

Gaza Strip. «Those released include 13 Israeli citizens, some of whom are dual citizens, in addition to 10 Thai citizens and a Filipino citizen,» said Majed al-Ansari, the ministry's spokesman. Qatar was a key mediator in the hostage release. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which delivered the hostages from Gaza into Egypt, also confirmed the release. The hostages, women and children, were undergoing medical checks before they were to be transferred to Israel.

Israel-Hamas truce, twelve Thai nationals held captive by Hamas were released from Gaza on Friday. Along with them, thirteen Israeli captives were also released on the same day. Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin confirmed the release of twelve Thai hostages kidnapped by Palestinian militants during Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel.

Stuart Seldowitz, former National Security Council advisor to ex-US President Barack Obama, has been arrested in New York City on charges related to the harassment of a street vendor. Viral videos captured Seldowitz making Islamophobic remarks against a halal food cart worker in Manhattan. In a display of solidarity, people gathered outside the vendor's cart, purchasing food to support him.

By Farah Saafan and Suleiman Al-Khalidi

The oil and gas sector, one of the major emitters of planet-warming gases, will need a rapid and substantial overhaul for the world to avoid even worse extremes fueled by human-caused climate change

Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, head of the Mumbai-based Dawoodi Bohra sect of Islam, will be conferred 'Nishan-e-Pakistan', making him the fourth Indian to be honoured with Pakistan's highest civilian award. The announcement of the award comes as an acknowledgement of Dr Saiduddin's services, according to a statement by Pakistan President Arif Alvi, who approved the conferment on Wednesday. The date for the investiture ceremony was, however, not made public.

A fund to compensate developing nations for the impacts of climate change was the supposed big breakthrough at last year's United Nations-led climate talks in Egypt

That work, begun in the days after the hostages were taken, finally bore fruit with the announcement of a prisoner swap deal mediated by Qatar and Egypt and agreed by Israel, Hamas and the United States. The secretive effort included tense personal diplomatic engagement by U.S. President Joe Biden, who held a number of urgent conversations with emir of Qatar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the weeks leading up to the deal. It also involved hours of painstaking negotiations including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, CIA Director Bill Burns, national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his deputy Jon Finer, and U.S.

The German government has pledged to invest 4 billion euros ($4.37 billion) in African green energy projects until 2030

BRICS leaders on Tuesday to discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict. The heads of state of six countries invited to join the group earlier this year — Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, Argentina and the United Arab Emirates — will attend the talks, the presidency said in a statement on Monday. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres will also participate in the virtual meeting, it said.