Medical teams at an Israeli hospital awaiting the arrival of hostages expected to be released from Gaza are "prepared for anything," Noa Eliakim Raz, head of the Returning Hostages Unit at the Rabin Medical Center-Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, told NBC News.

The Qatari prime minister told The New York Times that Gaza war mediators decided to delay talks on more difficult issues so a hostage-prisoner swap could be concluded quickly.

Israel's cabinet has approved the first stage of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal with Hamas — a move aimed at ending the two-year war in Gaza and freeing hostages on both sides.

Now he was sitting with his fellow ministers to discuss how to bring to an end two years of hostilities that had reduced much of Gaza to a charred wasteland—but had left Hamas still standing.At Netanyahu’s invitation,

President Donald Trump insisted "the war is over" between Israel and Hamas and that he believed the ceasefire deal between the two would hold

Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel praised Donald Trump's role in brokering Israel-Hamas ceasefire on Friday, saying it proves America remains the essential global power.

Israel assesses that Hamas may not be able to find and return all the remaining dead hostages in Gaza, according to three Israeli sources, a fact that may complicate efforts to reach a deal to end the war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his country is prepared to begin receiving hostages still held by Hamas.