Israel-Hamas war Nov 29 updates: 2 Russian hostages freed by Hamas leave Gaza

Two Russia hostages released by Hamas on Wednesday (Nov 29) arrived in Egypt via the Rafah crossing, per AFP. The two women have been identified as Yelena Trupanov, 50, and 73-year-old Irena Tati.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Nentanyahu has spoken with representatives of the Bibas family following reports from Hamas that three of its members were killed, including 10-month old Kfir Bibas, Haaretz reports.

According to Haaretz, Netanyahu told the family representatives that the matter was being investigated by Israel’s security forces.

Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz also addressed the report during a press conference and said it had no verification, Haaretz reports.

“I don’t know if it’s true or not but it’s part of a psychological warfare that our enemies are conducting,” he said.

The US is hopeful that the truce in Gaza between Israel and Hamas can be extended, US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

“We’re hopeful the truce can be extended,” Thomas-Greenfield said, adding, “This is all in the hands of Hamas. The Israelis have said if they continue to release 10 hostages a day, they will extend by a day. So it truly is in their hands. But I do think there’s a potential for that and we’re actively working to extend the deal.”

Israeli army says two Israeli captives transferred to Red Cross, on their way to Israel
The military said it received the information from the Red Cross.

“Their release is in addition to the list of abductees scheduled to be released today,” the army said in a post on X.

Earlier, we reported that Hamas’s armed wing said it had released two Russian citizens. It was not immediately clear whether the two Israeli captives the army said were transferred to the Red Cross are the same individuals.

Israel is investigating to verify Hamas' claims that the youngest ten-month-old baby Kfir Babis who was held hostage by the Islamist militant group has been killed. Unconfirmed media reports quoting Hamas said that the baby was killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike before the truce.  

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Hamas has said that it has freed two Russian women hostages. It said that the hostages were handed over to the Red Cross, "after the efforts of the Russian president"

Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry has said that two Palestinian children were killed on Wednesday in Jenin, the city in occupied West Bank.

The ministry said that "Adam al-Ghul, eight years old, and Bassem Abu el-Wafa, 15 years old, were killed by bullets from the occupier".
 

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said that people in Gaza are "in the midst of an epic humanitarian catastrophe before the eyes of the world."

He was speaking at United Nations Security Council meeting. 

"Intense negotiations are taking place to prolong the truce -– which we strongly welcome -- but we believe we need a true humanitarian ceasefire," he said.
 

Al Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas has said that 10-month-old Kfir Bibas, the youngest hostage in Hamas custody has died due to Israeli airstrike, claimed a media report.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres conveyed in an authored speech that UN called for 'irreversible' move towards 'two state-solution' for Israel-Palestine issue.

Tatiana Valoyava, the director-general of the UN office in Geneva, read out the speech authored by Guterres. The speech said that time had come for a “determined, irreversible way towards a two-state solution.”

During a daily briefing, Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy while speaking on the possible truce extension said Wednesday (Nov 29), "We will of course consider every serious proposal." 

Germany's domestic intelligence chief on Wednesday warned that the risk of Islamist attacks is "real and higher than it has been for a long time" because of the Israel-Hamas war.

"We see calls in jihadist spectrums for attacks and for Al-Qaeda and IS to tag on to the Middle East conflict," said Thomas Haldenwang in a statement, reported AFP news agency. 

The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli aggression has exceeded 15, 000, as per reports citing officials in the Palestinian enclave. 

World Food Programme (WFP) cautioned Tuesday (Nov 28) that the Gazans, including women and children, will be at risk of famine in case humanitarian food supplies do not continue, AFP reported. 

As per the UN agency, 121,161 people in Gaza received food since Friday (Nov 24) but added that six days was "not enough to make any meaningful impact".
 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday he would work to prolong a pause in the fighting in Gaza on an upcoming visit to Israel. 

"Looking at the next couple of days, we'll be focused on doing what we can to extend the pause so that we continue to get more hostages out and more humanitarian assistance in," Blinken said after a NATO meeting in Brussels. 

A senior Hamas official said "several" Russian hostages would be released Wednesday from the Gaza Strip, with the fighting paused by a humanitarian truce.

The agreement only covers women and children, and Hamas official Mussa Abu Marzuq posted on X, formerly Twitter, that only one man, a Russian-Israeli dual citizen, had been freed so far. "Today, several others will be released separately from the truce agreement in appreciation for the stance of President Putin," he wrote.

The Palestinian flag has been raised at the Oslo City Hall in solidarity with the people in Gaza to coincide with the United Nations International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. "When we know that more than 5,000 children have lost their lives it is only natural to remember them today," the mayor of the Norwegian capital Anne Lindboe tells AFP. Fighting began on October 7 when Hamas militants poured over the border into Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping about 240, according to Israeli officials. Israel's subsequent air and ground campaign in Gaza has killed nearly 15,000 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, and reduced large parts of the north of the territory to rubble.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday branded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "the butcher of Gaza" and accused him of spawning anti-Semitism across the world.

Erdogan has lashed out repeatedly at Israel for the scale of death and destruction caused by its response to Hamas militants' unprecedented October 7 cross-border attack. 

He has branded Israel a "terrorist state" and called Hamas "a liberation group". 

Erdogan redoubled those attacks during an appearance before his Islamic-rooted ruling party members in parliament. 

"Netanyahu has already written his name in history as the butcher of Gaza," Erdogan said in nationally televised remarks. 

"Netanyahu is endangering the security of all Jews in the world by supporting anti-Semitism with the murders he committed in Gaza." 

The world economy is slowing but is likely heading for a soft landing next year, the OECD said Wednesday as it pared back its forecast, but warning that the Israel-Hamas war could throw a spanner in the works.  

In its latest economic outlook report, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development trimmed its forecast for global growth this year to 2.9 percent, down from the 3.0 percent it forecast in September.

Pope Francis has repeated the call for continuation of the ongoing truce in the Gaza Strip, for the release of all hostages and for humanitarian aid access into the territory.

The 87-year-old pope, who has been unwell, asked an aide to read his remarks for him at his weekly audience with the public at the Vatican.

Israel claimed that Hamas militants kidnapped around 240 hostages when they launched the surprise attack on October 7, but in a recent report, Qatar said that at least 40 women and children are not with Hamas, and unaccounted for. 

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Billionaire business magnate Elon Musk received a symbolic dog-tag from the father of an Israeli citizen held as captive by Hamas in Gaza. Musk has promised to wear the purported dog tag till all the hostages were free. 

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A report in The Guardian cited a local Gaza-based journalist to claim a shooting incident in northern Gaza Strip which allegedly injured two Palestinians.

She reportedly added: "People are using the last hours of this extended truce to buy as many necessities as they can. People say this truce is meaningless because they are not able to go back to their homes and make sure their families that are stuck in the north are safe."

A source close to Hamas said on Wednesday (Nov 29) that the group was willing to extend by an additional four days a Gaza truce that has seen Israeli hostages exchanged for Palestinian prisoners, reports AFP. 

"Hamas has informed the mediators that it is willing to extend the truce for four days and that the movement would be able to release Israeli prisoners that it, other resistance movements and other parties hold during this period, according to the terms of the existing truce," the source told AFP.

Sounds of heavy gunfire were heard overnight and in the early hours of Wednesday (November 29) morning, eyewitness video showed as reported by Reuters. 

Israeli forces killed seven Palestinians, including two minors and at least one gunman, in the occupied West Bank late on Saturday (Nov 25) and early Sunday (Nov 26), medics and local sources said.

Turkish presidency said that Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday told United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres that Israel must be held accountable in international courts for the alleged war crimes in Gaza. 

The Turkish presidency said that in a phone call ahead of a UN Security Council meeting on Gaza planned for Wednesday, Erdogan and Guterres discussed the "expectations of the international community regarding Israel's unlawful attacks", access of humanitarian aid into the enclave, and efforts for a lasting peace.  

"During the call, President Erdogan said Israel continues to shamelessly trample on international law, the laws of war, and international humanitarian law by looking in the eyes of the international community, and it must be held accountable for the crimes it committed in front of international law," it said in a statement.

Two more Thai hostages held by Hamas were freed on Tuesday as they were welcomed by Thailand's foreign minister Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara in Israel's Be'er Ya'akov city, bringing to 19 the total number of Thais officially released.

According to the Thai foreign affairs ministry, 13 more remain in captivity.

There were 39 Thai nationals killed in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

The first batch of 17 Thai hostages will return home on Thursday (November 30) on an Israeli commercial flight.

India has voted in favour of a draft resolution in the UN General Assembly that expressed deep concern over Israel not withdrawing from the Syrian Golan.

The Syrian Golan is a region in southwest Syria that was occupied by Israeli forces on June 5, 1967.

The 193-member UN General Assembly voted on the draft resolution ‘The Syrian Golan’ under agenda item ‘The situation in the Middle East’ on Tuesday. The resolution, introduced by Egypt, was adopted by a recorded vote with 91 in favour, eight against and 62 abstentions.

(With inputs from agencies)

Officials from Israel, the US, Qatar and Egypt were negotiating a further extension of the truce, which entered its sixth and final day on Wednesday (Nov 29). Hamas is yet to release 10 more hostages today, as planned. And if everything goes well, the truce can very well be extended. 

Negotiators believe there are enough women and children in Hamas captivity to extend the truce by two additional days.

According to media reports, CIA Director Bill Burns, who is travelling to the region, also took part in the discussions and negotiations.

More people could die from disease than from bombings in the Gaza Strip if its health system is not repaired, a World Health Organization spokesperson said on Tuesday, warning of a surge in infectious diseases and diarrhea in children.

The list of the sixth set of hostages expected to be freed has been given to the Israeli government, and families are being notified, CNN reported citing sources. The release will take place on day 6 of the truce.

The United States has sent the first of three military planes to Egypt to bring vital humanitarian aid to Gaza during a truce between Israel and Hamas, US officials said, AFP reports.

The relief flights carrying food, medical supplies and winter gear are the first by the US military since the conflict began with the October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel.

The first Air Force C-17 aircraft landed on Tuesday in Egypt with 24.5 metric tons (54,000 pounds) of medical supplies and ready-to-eat food, the US Agency for International Development said.

“With 1.7 million people internally displaced and 2.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance, increased humanitarian supplies are essential to saving lives and alleviating suffering for the most vulnerable,” USAID said in a statement.

With cheers, chants and raised flags, Palestinians in Ramallah greeted the prisoners who were released on Tuesday (November 28) as part of the hostage prisoners swap deal between Israel and Hamas. A bus carrying the prisoners was seen leaving Ofer prison, near Ramallah in the occupied West bank, in the evening. A spokesman for the Qatari foreign ministry said the Palestinians released include 15 minors and 15 women. Ten Israeli hostages were released from Gaza including one minor and nine women including an Austrian citizen, two Argentinians, and a Filipino citizen.

Thailand’s Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara greeted two Thai hostages released by Hamas militants at the Shamir Medical Center in Israel on Tuesday. The latest swap of Hamas militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel took place Tuesday evening as part of an ongoing ceasefire agreement between the warring sides. Ten Israeli hostages were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza and were back in Israel. About an hour later, Israel released 30 Palestinian prisoners. Hamas and other militants still hold about 160 hostages out of 240 seized in their October 7 assault into southern Israel that ignited the war.

14-year-old Palestinian Ahmed Salaima and his 15-year-old cousin Moataz Salaima are greeted by family members upon their arrival home in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, after being released from an Israeli prison as part of a Hamas-Israel hostage deal in Gaza. 

A German woman was among 12 hostages released from Gaza on Tuesday as part of of an extended truce, Germany's foreign minister said. "Weeks of anguish have finally come to an end for other families: just today, 12 hostages were released -- among them, a German woman. I'm relieved for them all," Annalena Baerbock wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Thirty Palestinian prisoners were released Tuesday from Israeli prisons as part of the deal negotiated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States. This is the fifth exchange in the hostage deal with Hamas, which will likely be extended by at least one more day, in exchange for the release of additional hostages and a cessation of hostilities in the Gaza Strip. Ten Israelis and two foreigners held hostage in Gaza were also released, arriving in Israel on the fifth day of a temporary cease-fire.

Israel said it has released Palestinian prisoners on Tuesday (November 28) as part of a deal with Hamas that has extended the original 4-day truce between them and a bus was seen leaving Ofer prison, near Ramallah in the occupied West bank, in the evening. In a later video released Palestinians prisoners were seen arriving by bus, with International Red Cross personnel, in Ramallah. Ten Israeli hostages were being released from Gaza including one minor and nine women including an Austrian citizen, two Argentinians, and a Filipino citizen, Majed Al Ansari, the Qatar foreign ministry spokesman posted on messaging platform X. "Palestinians released from Israeli prisons include 15 minors and 15 women," Ansari added.

12-year-old French-Israeli Eitan Yahalomi, who was released on November 27 from Hamas captivity in Gaza, arrives by helicopter with his mother at the Ichilov hospital in Tel Aviv.

Israel's prison authority said Tuesday that 30 Palestinian prisoners had been released on the fifth day of the truce pausing fighting in the Gaza Strip.

The announcement came after 10 Israeli hostages returned to Israel under the terms of the deal following their release by Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters, along with two additional Thai hostages.

A statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that the two non-Israelis being freed by Hamas in Gaza are Thai nationals. The pair are not named. Thailand’s prime minister said earlier this week that he believed 15 Thai citizens remained hostage in Gaza. Netanyahu’s office also confirms the list of freed Israeli captives, nine elderly women and one teen girl, and reiterated his vow for all hostages to be freed.

A Red Cross convoy carrying released hostages crosses Rafah towards Egypt, as part of a Hamas-Israel hostage deal.

Relatives of hostages arrive by army helicopter to Sheba hospital in Ramat Gan, as Hamas handed over several hostages to the Red Cross in Gaza, as part of an exchange under the terms of an extended truce in the Israel-Hamas war. 

A French warship sent to Egypt to treat wounded from the Gaza Strip has received its first patients, a French minister said on Tuesday. The Dixmude arrived on Monday in the Egyptian town of El-Arish near the border with Gaza and on Tuesday received the patients, said Sebastien Lecornu, France's army minister. The vessel is equipped with two operating blocs, 40 beds and 80 medical personnel, he said.

In a post on X, the far-right Israeli minister of national security has said that stopping the war in Gaza means a dissolution of the coalition headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Just hours ago, he wrote another post on the same platform calling on Netanyahu to allow Israeli soldiers to return to fighting in Gaza in order to “crush Hamas”.

The Israel Defense Forces says the 12 hostages — 10 Israelis and two foreigners — have been transferred by the Red Cross to Egypt via the Rafah crossing. They will be brought to a meeting point where Israeli forces will verify their identities, before bringing them into Israel via a side gate at the Kerem Shalom crossing, the IDF says. “The families of the hostages are being updated by IDF representatives with the latest available information,” the IDF says.

Ten Israeli hostages have been transferred from Hamas to the Red Cross, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson says, adding that a Filipino national has also been released. The freed Israeli hostages include nine women and one child. One of the Israelis is a dual Austrian national and another two are dual Argentinian nationals. In exchange for the hostages, 30 Palestinian prisoners will be released by Israel later today, the spokesperson says.

The Israel Defense Forces confirms that Hamas has handed over 12 hostages to the Red Cross to be transferred to Israel. “Based on information that was received from the Red Cross, 12 hostages — including ten Israelis and two foreign nationals — are on their way toward Israeli territory,” the IDF says in a short statement.

Hamas on Tuesday handed over several hostages to the Red Cross in Gaza, reported news agency AFP, as part of a swap under the extended truce agreement between Israel and the Palestinian militant group. 

The hostages, all women, were handed over by masked and armed Hamas fighters to Red Cross officials in Rafah, near the border with Egypt, as per AFP reports.