Live: Israel delays release of 602 Palestinian prisoners

The European Union’s special representative for the Middle East peace process has said that the Gaza ceasefire must be implemented as agreed, without imposing additional conditions.

“The Gaza ceasefire has brought the beginnings of relief, freedom and hope for safety to countless suffering, innocent people,” Sven Koopmans wrote on X. “It must be implemented in full and without new conditions.”

Koopmans warned that further Israeli military action would only deepen Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe.

His remarks follow Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest ultimatum insisting that all Israeli captives must be released by Saturday.

Social media users from around the globe are paying tribute this week to journalist and activist Mousa Qous, a long-time prominent figure in Jerusalem's Afro-Palestinian community. 

Mousa was the executive director of the African Community Society in the Old City of Jerusalem. Much of his life was dedicated to the Palestinian cause and highlighting the often-overlooked experience of Afro-Palestinians.

He passed due to a fire in his home on 9 February and is survived by his wife Joharah and his children, Mohammad and Shaden. 

Read more: 'Jerusalem lost part of its soul': Tributes to Afro-Palestinian leader flow online

Egypt has announced plans in a post on X to present a comprehensive proposal for rebuilding Gaza, ensuring Palestinians remain in their homeland despite ongoing Israeli aggression.

"Egypt affirms its intention to present a comprehensive vision for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip in a manner that guarantees the survival of the Palestinian people on their land and in a manner consistent with the legitimate and legal rights of this people," said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Cairo reaffirmed its opposition to forced displacement, saying that any resolution must uphold Palestinian rights and not serve as a cover for "ethnic cleansing".

Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said that true stability in the region can only be achieved by addressing the root cause of the conflict, the Israeli occupation, and implementing a two-state solution.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told state-owned Al-Mamlaka TV that there will be a coordinated Arab-Egyptian effort to rebuild Gaza while ensuring its people remain in their homeland.

His remarks followed King Abdullah’s meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington, where Trump continues to push his widely rejected plan to seize control of Gaza and forcibly relocate its residents to neighbouring countries.

Less than three weeks into his second administration, US President Donald Trump dealt a death blow to his keystone campaign slogan, “America First”, with his stated plans to “take over Gaza” and build a “Riviera of the Middle East”. 

Next to him, smirking from ear to ear, stood the butcher of Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who told the world that this plan could “change history”.

In a move aiming to blur the lines of accountability for Washington’s “greatest friend and ally in the Middle East”, Trump suggested the US military could clear and secure Gaza. 

What does clearing mean? The removal of 50 million tonnes of debris left after Israel’s mass destruction of the Palestinian territory - or the people of Gaza themselves? 

The latter would be the logical extension of the genocidal policy enacted by Israel and made possible by American munitions. The answer to this question was largely left to the imagination of the audience.

Read more: Gaza takeover plan: Biden couldn't finish us off, nor will Trump

 What is happening in the occupied West Bank is a war on the very idea of a Palestinian state. It is a war of Judaisation and settlement expansion; a war on resistance, on the Palestinian Authority, on the land, and on the people.

But another goal might surpass them all in importance: it is a war on the outcome of the Gaza conflict.

Israel wants to create a different reality in the occupied West Bank - one that erases 7 October 2023 and the war that followed from the forefront of the Palestinian consciousness.

It is trying to forcibly displace the Palestinian population, an aim central to the Zionist doctrine of settler-colonial expansion. This goal has not yet been achieved in Gaza. 

Israel is waging war on the same resistance that undermined the state’s security doctrine and awakened its existential fears, as a relatively small and modestly armed group of Hamas fighters were able to swiftly overwhelm Israel’s defences on 7 October.

Read more: Israel lost the war on the West Bank before it even began

In a stament on on Tuesday, Hamas reiterered its commitment to the Gaza ceasefire deal, saying it holds Israel accountable for any "complications or delays."

This is a full statement of what Hamas had to say published on its Telegram channel:

• We renew our rejection of US President Trump's statements regarding the displacement of our people from the Gaza Strip under the pretext of reconstruction.

• Trump's statements are racist and a call for ethnic cleansing, the liquidation of the Palestinian cause, and a denial of our people's established national rights.

• The plan to deport our people from Gaza will not succeed and will be met with a unified Palestinian, Arab, and Islamic position rejecting all displacement plans.

• Our great people in Gaza have stood firm against bombing and aggression and will remain steadfast in their land, thwarting all forced displacement and deportation schemes.

• What the occupation failed to achieve through aggression and massacres, it will not succeed in achieving through liquidation and displacement plans.

• We are committed to the ceasefire agreement, which the occupation pledged to uphold under the mediation of Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.

• We affirm that the occupation has not honoured its commitments and bears responsibility for any complications or delays.

King Abdullah took to X to highlight key points from his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

• King Abdullah II of Jordan met with President Trump at the White House for a "constructive discussion" on the longstanding partnership between the two countries.

• He said that Jordan’s stability and the protection of its people remain his top priorities.

• The king reaffirmed Jordan’s firm opposition to the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank, calling it a unified Arab position.

• He stressed the need to rebuild Gaza without forcing its residents to leave and urged immediate action to address the humanitarian crisis.

• Abdullah reiterated that a just peace based on a two-state solution is essential for regional stability and requires US leadership.

• He described Trump as a "man of peace" and credited him with helping to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.

• The king called for continued US and international efforts to uphold the ceasefire and prevent further escalation in the West Bank.

• He warned that worsening conditions in the West Bank could destabilise the entire region.

• Jordan will continue working with its partners to achieve a just and comprehensive peace for all.

The armed wing of Hamas, the Qassam Brigades, announced that its fighters engaged in a gun battle with Israeli forces in al-Manshiya neighbourhood of the Nour Shams camp in the occupied West Bank, reported Al Jazeera.

Israeli officials have privately acknowledged that Hamas was correct in accusing Israel of breaching the ceasefire agreement, The New York Times has reported.

Three Israeli officials and two mediators, speaking anonymously, told the newspaper that Israel had not upheld its commitments under the deal.

Hamas announced on Tuesday it would suspend further captive releases, citing Israel’s repeated violations, including deadly attacks and the obstruction of aid deliveries to Gaza.

Despite this, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to resume an Israeli assault in Gaza if captives are not released by Saturday at noon, effectively ending the truce.

The New York Times also noted that a major obstacle to extending the ceasefire is Netanyahu himself, who has delayed negotiations. Talks were supposed to begin last week, but Netanyahu only authorised a delegation to travel to Qatar - one of the mediators - early this week.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday appeared to retreat from his earlier threat to cut aid to Jordan, Egypt, and other Arab nations if they refused to take in large numbers of Palestinians who would be forcefully expelled from Gaza.

“I don’t have to threaten that. I do believe we’re above that,” Trump said, contradicting his previous suggestion that withholding aid was an option.

Jordan’s King Abdullah avoided making direct comments on Trump’s sweeping plan to reshape the Middle East or the idea that Jordan could be forced to accept a large influx of refugees from Gaza.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has indefinitely postponed his planned trip to Washington, according to Saudi broadcaster Al Arabiya, as tensions between Egypt and the US escalate.

The visit, originally scheduled for 18 February, was put on hold due to Cairo’s strong opposition to a US plan promoted by President Donald Trump to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza into Egypt and Jordan.

US President Donald Trump has reiterated his push for Washington to take control of Gaza but said he has no personal interest in developing property in the war-ravaged territory.

Speaking at the White House alongside Jordan’s King Abdullah II, who has been leading Arab opposition to the plan, Trump dismissed concerns about the legality of the move.

When asked under what authority the US would seize Gaza, he simply responded, “under US authority”.

Iran has formally notified the UN Security Council of what it calls “reckless and provocative” threats from US President Donald Trump, accusing him of endangering regional stability with his rhetoric.

Tehran said that “any act of aggression will have severe consequences”, reaffirming its right to defend itself against any potential attack.