If Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar has indeed been assassinated, it would make it easier to reach a hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official told The Jerusalem Post.
“[Mohammed] Sinwar was the most extreme figure in terms of negotiation positions for reaching a deal,” the official said. “If he is out of the picture, it should ease the efforts to reach an agreement.”
The assassination attempt occurred as the Israeli delegation, led by “M” from the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and the Coordinator for Hostages and Missing Persons, Gal Hirsch, arrived in Qatar on Tuesday evening.
Yael Alexander, mother of released hostage Edan Alexander, shared details of her son’s captivity in Gaza from Ichilov Hospital on Tuesday.
“Our hearts broke as Edan began to share the unimaginable hardship, the daily fear — just to survive the night. The hunger, the lack of water, the horrific sanitary conditions,” she said.
Edan Alexander was released from Hamas captivity on Monday, on his 584th day in Gaza.
IDF aircraft struck a Hezbollah terrorist in the area of the Beaufort Ridge in southern Lebanon, the military stated on Tuesday.
The terrorist was located at a site used by Hezbollah to manage its fire and defense array. The same site was struck by the IDF last week, the military noted.
The military also struck an additional Hezbollah terrorist in Hula, also in southern Lebanon.
US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff meets with hostage families, Israelis, at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, May 13, 2025. (credit: Chen G. Schimmel/The Jerusalem Post)
US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff meets with hostage families, Israelis, at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, May 13, 2025. (credit: Chen G. Schimmel/The Jerusalem Post)
US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff meets with hostage families, Israelis, at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, May 13, 2025. (credit: Chen G. Schimmel/The Jerusalem Post)US Middle East Steve Witkoff told the Jerusalem Post that he hopes the deal that freed Edan Alexander from Hamas captivity is a beacon of hope for everybody else, especially the families of the remaining 58 hostages in Gaza.
“Thank god for President Trump, and by the way, the Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] did an exceptional job here, as did the Qatar PM Sheikh Mohammed.”
Pope Leo XIV has told the world’s Jewish communities he wants to strengthen the Roman Catholic Church’s Dialogue with them, in a message coming after a souring of relations between the Vatican and Israel over the war in Gaza.
The first US-born pope sent a letter to Rabbi Noam Marans, the Director of Interreligious Affairs of the American Jewish Committee (AJC), who posted the letter on the social platform X late on Monday.
“Trusting in the assistance of the almighty, I pledge to continue and strengthen the Church’s Dialogue and cooperation with the Jewish people in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council’s declaration Nostra Aetate,” Leo said in the letter.
Released hostage Edan Alexander spoke with US President Donald Trump while at the Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv, Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff shared in an X/Twitter post on Tuesday.
Alexander was released by Hamas on Monday following 584 days in captivity in a hostage release deal secured by Trump.
“I was honored to meet Edan Alexander today and welcome him home. After months in captivity, the world is inspired by his courage and resilience,” he wrote.
US President Donald Trump arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to begin a four-day tour of the Gulf region, with a focus on economic agreements rather than regional security crises, including the war in Gaza and the growing tension over Iran’s nuclear program.
Accompanied by prominent American business leaders – including Tesla CEO and Trump adviser Elon Musk – Trump will visit Riyadh first, the site of the Saudi-US Investment Forum. He is scheduled to travel to Qatar on Wednesday and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday.
“While energy remains a cornerstone of our relationship, the investments and business opportunities in the kingdom have expanded and multiplied many, many times over,” Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said as he opened the forum.
The IDF struck Hamas terrorists who were operating from within a command and control center located in the Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, the military announced on Tuesday.
According to the military, the compound was used by the terrorists to plan and execute terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops.
“Within days, things are going to happen in Gaza — things you’ve never seen before,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the War Wounded Forum on Monday.
According to a handout, the prime minister met with wounded soldiers for an hour and a half and listened to the soldiers’ stories of heroism and injury.
