Latest Hostage situations News
Israelis grapple with how to celebrate Passover, a holiday about freedom, while many remain captive
JERUSALEM (AP) — Every year, Alon Gat’s mother led the family's Passover celebration of the liberation of the ancient Israelites from Egypt thousands of years ago. But this year, Gat is struggling with how to reconcile a holiday commemorating freedom after his mother was slain and other family...
Artist and curators refuse to open Israel pavilion at Venice Biennale until cease-fire, hostage deal
VENICE, Italy (AP) — The artist and curators representing Israel at this year’s Venice Biennale announced on Tuesday they won't open the Israeli pavilion exhibit until there is a cease-fire in Gaza and an agreement to release hostages seized by Hamas on Oct. 7. Their decision,...
Judge in Trump's election interference case rejects 'hostages' label for jailed Jan. 6 defendants
WASHINGTON (AP) — The judge overseeing former President Donald Trump's election interference case rejected the notion Wednesday that jailed defendants charged with some of the most violent crimes of the U.S. Capitol riot are “hostages” — a label Trump and his allies have frequently used to...
Palestinians returning to Khan Younis after Israeli withdrawal find an unrecognizable city
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Stunned Palestinians found their home city unrecognizable Monday as they filtered in to salvage what they could from the vast destruction left by Israeli troops who withdrew from southern Gaza's Khan Younis a day earlier after months of fighting and bombardment. ...
Pope marks 6-month anniversary of Hamas attacks by meeting with relatives of hostages
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis met Monday with relatives of hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7, marking the six-month anniversary of the attack in southern Israel with an hourlong audience. The Vatican released photos of the encounter, showing relatives of several of the hostages...
Israel finds the body of a hostage killed in Gaza, while talks will resume on a cease-fire
CAIRO (AP) — Israel's military said Saturday it had recovered the body of a 47-year-old farmer who was held hostage in Gaza, while negotiators prepared for another round of talks Sunday on brokering a cease-fire and securing the release of the remaining hostages, six months into the war. ...
For families of hostages, it's a race against time as Israel's war reaches six-month mark
JERUSALEM (AP) — It’s the last wish of a dying mother, to be with her daughter once more. But six months into Israel's war against Hamas, time is running out for Liora Argamani, who hopes to stay alive long enough to see her kidnapped daughter come home. “I want to see her one...
Half a year into the war in Gaza, here's a look at the conflict by the numbers
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israel-Hamas war has stretched on for half a year and become one of the most destructive, deadly, and intractable conflicts of the 21st century. Since Hamas' Oct. 7 cross-border attack, Israel has pummeled the Gaza Strip, displacing the vast majority of the...
American families of hostages in Gaza say they don't have time for 'progress' in cease-fire talks
NEW YORK (AP) — The families of four American hostages and others killed in the Israel-Hamas war said Friday that any cease-fire deal must bring their loved ones home from Gaza after half a year in captivity. “By now, they are all in dire humanitarian condition,” said Orna...
Biden urges Egypt, Qatar leaders to press Hamas to come to agreement for Israeli hostages in Gaza
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday wrote to the leaders of Egypt and Qatar, calling on them to press Hamas for a hostage deal with Israel, according to a senior administration official, one day after Biden called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to redouble efforts to...
