Live: Israel delays release of 602 Palestinian prisoners

Israeli occupation forces arrested on Tuesday four boys near the Yahya Ayyash roundabout in Jenin, located in the occupied West Bank, reported Al Jazeera Arabic.

The identities and ages of the detained boys remain unclear.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Monday, as the 39-year-old Saudi leader is catapulted to the intersection of a ring of conflicts stretching from Ukraine to Gaza that the Trump administration wants to turn a page on.

In Ukraine, Saudi Arabia has emerged as a convenient mediator for the Trump administration, a reflection of how quickly US foreign policy has pivoted in eastern Europe.

Saudi Arabia welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin on a visit in 2023 when the Biden administration was lobbying partners to shun the Russian leader.

Now, with Trump in office and the US’s Nato allies sidelined, Riyadh is the preferred neutral ground for the Kremlin and Washington to begin discussing an end to the war in Ukraine, historic talks that analysts say could rewrite the security architecture of Europe.

Read more: As Trump looks to turn page on Gaza and Ukraine, all roads lead to Riyadh

Lebanon has issued a firm demand for Israel to fully withdraw its military forces from southern Lebanon, as stipulated in a ceasefire agreement involving Hezbollah. This call comes amid mounting accusations that Israel continues to violate the terms of the truce.

President Joseph Aoun held urgent talks with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Tuesday to address Israel’s failure to comply with the ceasefire agreement. A statement from the president’s office condemned these violations and emphasised the need for immediate action to ensure Israel adheres to its commitments.  

Although Israeli forces have reportedly withdrawn from several towns in southern Lebanon, they remain entrenched in five strategic border outposts. This continued presence directly violates the ceasefire terms, drawing sharp criticism from Lebanese officials and raising concerns about Israel’s intentions.  

Under the agreement, Israel was required to complete its withdrawal by 26 January. However, the deadline was extended to Tuesday after Israel refused to comply, further undermining trust and exacerbating regional instability.  

Lebanese authorities have reiterated their demand for “a complete Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Lebanese territories in compliance with international charters and laws and UN resolutions”.

More than 230 global civil society organisations, including those taking legal action in five different countries, are calling on governments producing F-35 fighter jets to immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel.

“The past 16 months have illustrated with devastating clarity that Israel is not committed to complying with international law,” the organisations wrote in a letter released on Tuesday.

They welcomed the temporary ceasefire in Gaza, but warned that its fragility risks further Israeli violations while also highlighting Israel’s use of military fighter jets in the occupied West Bank.

The letter said that F-35 partner countries “have individually and collectively failed” to stop the jets from being used to commit serious violations of international law “despite overwhelming evidence”.

“States have either been unwilling to observe their international legal obligations and/or claimed that the structure of the F-35 programme means that it is not possible to apply arms controls to any end-user, making the entire programme incompatible with international law,” they wrote.

The letter was sent to government ministers in F-35 partner countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and the UK where signatories have taken legal action to try to halt arms exports to Israel. 

Read more: Over 230 global NGOs say all F-35 exports to Israel are unlawful

England's most senior judge has criticised British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for saying last week that the government would seek to prevent Palestinian refugees from living in the UK using a refugee scheme established for Ukrainians.

The Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales Baroness Sue Carr said she was "deeply troubled" by Starmer's approach.

His statement came after it emerged that a judge had ruled that six Palestinians from Gaza - a mother, a father and four children - could remain in Britain using the Ukraine Family Scheme, a visa programme originally established for Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war following Russia's invasion. 

The Home Office refused an initial application by the Palestinian family in May last year, but in September an immigration tribunal ruled in their favour.

Opposition Conservative Party MPs slammed the decision last week, with party leader Kemi Badenoch declaring in parliament on Wednesday that it "cannot be allowed to stand".

Read more: Top English judge slams Starmer's move against Palestinian refugees living in UK

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has confirmed that a deal with Hamas was reached in Cairo to bring forward the release of Israeli captives this weekend.

Hamas will free six living captives, Netanyahu's office said, instead of only three who were slated for release.

Four bodies of deceased hostages will also be handed over on Thursday, followed by four more next week, the prime minister's office said.

Hamas will release the bodies of four captives on Thursday, while the remaining six captives still alive will be released on Saturday, senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said in a televised speech.

The six to be released on Saturday include including Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mengisto, who have been held in Gaza since before the war started 16 months ago.

The bodies will include members from the Bibas family.

During the 7 October attack, Palestinian fighters took Yarden and Shiri Bibas and their two children: Ariel, who was four when kidnapped and Kfir who was nine-months-old. Yarden was released on 1 February.

Hamas said in November 2023 that Shiri, Ariel and Kfir were killed during Israeli bombardment of Gaza, but Israeli authorities had not confirmed the report.  

Israel has reached an agreement with Hamas over the release on Saturday of the six remaining captives who are alive, Axios reported on Tuesday, citing an unnamed senior Israeli official.

The move would form part of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, Axios said.

It comes as Israel prepared to begin indirect negotiations with Hamas on the second phase of the agreement.

A letter signed by 61 MPs from several political parties has urged the British government to impose a ban on Israeli settlement goods.

The letter, sent to the business and trade secretary by Labour MP Abtisam Mohamed on Monday, alleges that the UK's trade and investment relationship with Israel "falls short of the standards required" under international law.

It cites the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to support its view.

The letter notes the ICJ's advisory opinion last July that states must not "render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation" caused by Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory - an occupation the ICJ said was illegal.

By declaring that states must "abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings with Israel" concerning the occupied territories "which may entrench its unlawful presence", the ICJ asserted that boycotting Israeli settlement goods is an obligation for states.

Read more: British MPs citing ICJ opinion urge ban on Israeli settlement goods

Israeli occupation forces demolished four houses in the town of Jabal al-Mukaber, southeast of Jerusalem, today, Wafa news agency is reporting. 

Eyewitnesses reported that police and occupation army forces stormed the town, accompanied by a bulldozer and demolished the houses.

A report issued by the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission stated that Israeli forces carried out 76 demolition operations last month that affected 126 facilities, including 74 inhabited homes, four uninhabited ones and 29 agricultural structures.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is expected to travel to Riyad on Thursday for discussions on an Arab plan for Gaza, two Egyptian security sources said.

Arab states are expected to discuss a post-war plan for Gaza reconstruction, possibly to counter US President Donald Trump's plans to '"take over" the Gaza Strip and displace the population to Jordan and Egypt. 

There have been 266 violations of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement registered since it came into effect on 19 January, Palestinian security sources have told Al Jazeera.

The violations have led to the killing of at least 132 Palestinians, including 26 who succumbed to their wounds, and more than 900 people were injured as a result of Israeli gunfire and raids on the enclave.

Most violations occurred in central Gaza, with 110 incidents, followed by 54 in Rafah, 49 in Gaza City, 19 in Khan Younis and 13 in the northern Gaza Strip.

Lebanon will consider any remaining Israeli presence on its lands an occupation and has the right to use all means to ensure an Israeli withdrawal, a spokesperson for the Lebanese presidency said on Tuesday. 

Lebanon will reportedly also ask the UN Security Council to force an immediate Israel withdrawal. 

Israel will begin negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, including an exchange of Israeli captives with Palestinian prisoners, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Tuesday.

Saar added that Israel demanded a complete demilitarisation of Gaza.

In a post on X, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz says the Israeli army “will remain in a buffer zone in Lebanon in five strategic outposts along the border line, to ensure the protection of the northern communities”, a day after the deadline for Israeli forces to withdraw from areas across southern Lebanon has passed. 

“The IDF's enforcement activities against Hezbollah will continue at full strength. We will not allow a return to the reality of October 7th”, Katz added.