French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to express France’s solidarity with Israel and advocate for the release of hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 Hamas attack. The French leader is also expected to call for the resumption of a “genuine peace process,” as stated by his office. Stay updated on the latest developments by following our live blog. All times are in Paris time (GMT+2).
The latest news in brief:
- French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Tel Aviv Tuesday morning to meet with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defence minister Benny Gantz and main opposition leader Yair Lapid.
- Two elderly hostages released from Hamas captivity in Gaza have been airlifted to an Israeli hospital to be reunited with family Tuesday.
- This brings the total number of hostages released by Hamas to four. No Palestinian prisoners were released in exchange, a condition Hamas had previously set for hostage releases.
- Overnight Israeli air strikes across Gaza killed 140 people, according to the Hamas-run government’s media office.
- The death toll in Gaza rose to 5,087, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said Monday. The number of people taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 increased to 222, according to the Israeli military. The official number of people killed in the Hamas attack has not been revised since Saturday; it remains at 1,400.
Israeli ‘s military spokesman Daniel Hagari has said the IDF is “ready and determined” for the next stage in the war and is awaiting political instruction. French President Emmanuel
He said Israel was learning from the US experience in the Middle East, but “our war is on our borders, not thousands of miles from Israel,” adding that he was expecting weeks of fighting ahead.
Hagari said Egypt was playing a key role in negotiations for the release of hostages from Gaza, which he said was a top