This is an entry from: Live: Israel delays release of 602 Palestinian prisoners
Evening recap
17 February 2025 23:52 GMT
Good evening Middle East Eye readers,
Our blog will soon be closing for the day. Here are some of today's main developments:
- Israeli forces are beginning to withdraw from southern Lebanon except from ‘five strategic locations’, hours before the deadline for its complete pullout from Lebanon as per the ceasefire deal reached last November.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has met with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in Riyadh and discussed the Gaza ceasefire deal. He said that any deal on the future of the Strip must boost regional security.
- Families of Israeli captives have marched across Israel to mark the 500 days of captivity and call for a 500-minute fast in solidarity with the captives.
- Israeli troops stormed the town of al-Khader, located in the south of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, firing sound bombs and toxic gas at nearby homes and shops.
- Israeli media reported that Israel is preparing to receive four dead bodies of captives from Gaza on Thursday, as part of the ceasefire deal.
- Israel has continued to block the entry of temporary housing into the Gaza Strip despite an agreement to allow it as part of the ceasefire.