5h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 11:30pmWhat you need to know
4m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 4:30am
Hundreds waiting in Tel Aviv for hostages release within next hour
Hundreds of Israelis gathered at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square this morning before dawn, in anticipation of the release of 20 living hostages from Hamas.
It’s now just gone past 7am local time in Israel, with the hostages release to begin within the next hour.
Loading…
People can be seen waving Israeli flags and placards, including some praising US President Donald Trump.
The crowd is seated in front of a large screen which will broadcast the hostages’ movements through the Netzarim corridor and then Khan Younis in the coming hours.
Reporting with Reuters
8m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 4:26amConvoys make their way for imminent hostages-prisoners swap
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) convoys in Gaza are moving into position to collect Israeli hostages, an official involved in the operation told Reuters.
(Reuters)11m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 4:23amBreaking: Palestinian detainees preparing to leave Israeli prisons
Palestinian detainees are now preparing to leave Israeli prisons ahead of their expected release, Reuters has just reported.
An official involved in the operation has told Reuters the detainees are boarding busses at the prisons.
18m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 4:16amHamas publishes names of 20 Israeli hostages to be released
Palestinian group Hamas has published the names of the 20 living Israeli hostages to be released under the first phase of a ceasefire agreement with Israel.
The list matches Israel’s.
25m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 4:09amWhat next for Israel and Hamas after the hostage return?
The ceasefire and release of hostages are the first steps in the proposed peace plan.
Competing demands remain on the next steps, casting uncertainty on whether the conflict is indeed over.
Some of the points in the 20-point plan were previously requests that Israel and Hamas had outright rejected before.
One of the points, for example, would require Hamas to disarm and vacate its rule over Gaza — something it has previously said it would not do unless a sovereign Palestinian state was established.
Meanwhile, part of the plan said that under certain conditions, it may lead to a “credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood” — something Israel opposes, claiming a Palestinian state would pose an existential threat.
38m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:56amWhat do we know about the Palestinian prisoners being released?
As we mentioned earlier, Israel is set to release about 2,000 Palestinians.
Among them are about 1,700 people Israeli troops seized from Gaza during the war and have held without charge since.
Also among those being released are about 250 Palestinians serving prison sentences.
Many are members of Hamas and the Fatah faction who were imprisoned over shootings, bombings or other attacks that killed or attempted to kill Israelis, as well as others convicted on lesser charges.
They’ll return to the West Bank or Gaza or be sent into exile.
It’s unclear who will be among the prisoners released back into Gaza, and whether any will be deported.
Reporting with AP
49m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:45am
📷 Palestinians carry their belongings back into northern Gaza
Here are some of the latest images coming through, where thousands of Palestinians have continued to travel into northern parts of Gaza as Israeli forces withdrew from the area.
Two young girls pull a cart in Gaza loaded with their belongings. (AP: Abdel Kareem Hana)
A Palestinian man inspects the remains of a destroyed home in Gaza City. (AP: Abdel Kareem Hana)
A displaced Palestinian boy carries his belongings as he walks along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City. (AP: Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians collect aid supplies from a truck that entered Gaza. (Reuters: Ramadan Abed)59m agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:36amHow many days has it been since the Israeli hostages were taken?
Today marks 737 days since the Israeli hostages were taken.
It’s a number many Israelis have updated daily on strips of adhesive tape worn in national commemoration.
About 250 Israelis were taken hostage on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people.
But as we’ve mentioned earlier, only 20 hostages are believed to still be alive — set to be released sometime today.
It appears unlikely that the remains of up to 28 others will be returned at the same time.
On Sunday, local time, Israel said “an international body” will help locate the remains if they are not released tomorrow.
Reporting with AP
1h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:24am
Crowds gather at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv
It’s just gone 6:24am in Tel Aviv and crowds have gathered at Hostages Square to wait for long-awaited news that their loved ones have been released after 737 days.
In photo posts on X, the Hostages and Missing Families forum have captured multiple images of dozens of people seated in front of a large screen which will be broadcast when the 20 living hostages are released at 4pm AEDT.
1h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:15amWhere will the Israeli hostages be taken once they’re released?
Israel says it expects the 20 living hostages will be released together in the coming hours.
They’ll then be handed to the International Committee of the Red Cross and to the Israeli military.
The military plans to take them to the Reim military base in southern Israel to be reunited with their families.
Israel then plans to take the hostages to centres around Israel.
But they’ve asked the Red Cross to have ambulances ready in case hostages need immediate care after more than two years in captivity.
Reporting with AP
1h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 3:04amBreaking: Hostages to be released in less than two hours
Israeli media is reporting the release of hostages held in Gaza is expected to begin at 8am local time — which is 4pm AEDT — from the Netzarim Corridor.
It will continue at 10am in Gaza’s Khan Yunis.
The Israeli hostages taken by Hamas will be returned home shortly. (AP: Hostages and Missing Families Forum)
Reporting by Reuters
1h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 2:57amThe ‘major sticking points’ in Trump’s 20-point peace plan
US President Donald Trump declared this morning “the war is over” — but experts say many parts of his 20-point peace plan are still up in the air.
Rodger Shanahan, a Middle East analyst and former army officer, told the ABC, “There’s so many things that can go wrong” with the plan.
“I think it would probably be more accurate to say is that this is an immediate end to hostilities and it’s a hostage handover,” he said.
“Anything further than that, I think, we have really got to wait and see how this plan unfolds.”
Middle East analyst Rodger Shanahan. (ABC News)
Shanahan says the plan has “very few details” about how it will be implemented, pointing to the disarmament of Hamas and the International Stabilization Force as some of the “major sticking points”.
“The disarmament …Â has been rejected by Hamas. They have offered up something that’s called ‘a weapons freeze’.
“Also, the 20-point plan asks for the stabilisation force to conduct that disarmament.
“We don’t know who is going to be in that disarmament force, what their remit is going to be, how quickly they’re going to deploy, what their relationship is with the Israeli military.
“On top of that, we have the transition authority, the organisation that’s supposed to actually govern in the interim Gaza and then advance the reconstruction of Gaza.”
You can read about the 20-point peace plan below.
1h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 2:40am
📹 Some Israeli settlers angry about peace plan
I mentioned earlier that while many are celebrating the ceasefire, some Israelis are angry about the peace plan.
My colleague Barbara Miller spoke with Israeli settlers on the northern border with Gaza, who said they were angry the deal moved away from any suggestions Gazans would be forced out of the territory.
You can watch the full story here:
Loading…
2h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 2:25am
Families nervously waiting for Israeli hostages to be released
Omri Miran (right) is among the 20 Israeli hostages to be returned today. (ABC News)
Moshe Lavi, the brother-in-law of hostage Omri Miran, told ABC News that this was the moment his family have been fighting for since the October 7 attack.
“We are hoping now that everything will go smoothly and that my sister will finally embrace Omri and that my nieces will finally hug him,” he said.
“I can’t wait for that moment.”
Mr Lavi said that they don’t know much about his condition, but believe he will return in an “unfortunate state physically”.
“But we have no doubt mentally that he will remain a strong person and that the body will heal with time.
“We just want to bring him back to safety and ensure that our family is whole again.”
2h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 2:10am
Hostage release may not be ‘an easy task’ for Hamas
There are just hours now before the 8pm AEDT deadline for Hamas to begin releasing Israeli hostages.
Stephanie March from the ABC’s Foreign Correspondent said it would not be “an easy task” for Hamas to release all 20 living hostages and gather the remains of the 28 deceased hostages.
“There are still a lot of areas in Gaza that are occupied by the IDF (Israel Defense Forces)Â that Hamas may not have access to, to be able to recover the remains of the deceased,” she said.
“Then finding a way to transfer over to the Red Cross and then over to the Israeli side to those hospitals and be reunited with their families.
“It is not necessarily going to be smooth sailing.”
March said it would be interesting to see how Hamas presents itself during the hostage release today.
“Getting all 20 out alive in one go is a big ask and I think it’ll be very interesting to watch how Hamas stage manages that,” she said.
“In the past, they’ve made a big show of appearing as an armed force with a lot of supporters.
“Whether that’s the right tone for where we’re at right now, how they present themselves, will be quite interesting to see.”
2h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 1:55am
Is Palestine attending the peace summit?
Why isn’t Palestine invited to the peace summit in Egypt? I would have thought that they would be one of the first invited
— Max
Hi Max,
Thanks for your question.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will attend the summit to finalise an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, an Axios reporter said on X on Sunday, citing a senior Palestinian official.
The summit, which will be attended by 20 countries, will be held in the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh.
2h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 1:41am
Who are the remaining Israeli hostages?
As I mentioned earlier, the 20 Israeli hostages still believed to be alive are expected to be released in the coming hours.
Their release is set to be followed later by the handover of bodies of the remaining 28 deceased hostages.
These people were killed on October 7, 2023, or died while in captivity.
Here’s the 20 Israelis believed to still be alive:
Matan Angrest, 22: An Israeli soldier Gali Berman & Ziv Berman, 28: Fraternal twins taken from kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7Elkana Bohbot, 36: Kidnapped from the Nova music festival Rom Braslavski, 21: Working as a security guard at the Nova music festival Nimrod Cohen, 21: Kidnapped as a soldier in southern Israel Ariel Cunio, 28: Kidnapped from the Nir Oz kibbutz David Cunio, 35: Kidnapped from the Nir Oz kibbutz. Brother of Ariel. Evyatar David, 24: Kidnapped at Nova music festivalGuy Gilboa-Dalal, 24: Kidnapped at Nova music festival. Evyatar’s friendMaksym Harkin, 37: Kidnapped at Nova music festival Eitan Horn, 38: Kidnapped from Nir Oz kibbutzSegev Kalfon, 27: Kidnapped at Nova music festival Bar Kupershtein, 23: Working as a security guard at the Nova music festival Omri Miran, 48: Kidnapped from the Nahal Oz kibbutzEitan Mor, 25: Working as a security guard at the Nova music festival Yosef-Chaim Ohana, 25: Kidnapped at Nova music festival Alon Ohel, 24: German-Serbian, kidnapped at Nova music festivalAvinatan Or, 32: Kidnapped at Nova music festival Matan Zangauker, 25: Kidnapped from the Nir Oz kibbutz
Here are the Israelis whose conditions are unknown:
Tamir Nimrodi, 20: An IDF official, kidnapped from the Erez crossingBipin Joshi, 24: Nepalese citizen on student exchange kidnapped in October 7Â
3h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 1:25am
Israelis honour Trump with billboards
Some have referred to Donald Trump as ‘Cyrus the Great’, a biblical king who freed the Jews from Babylonian captivity. (Reuters: Hannah McKay)
US President Donald Trump is expected to receive a hero’s welcome in Israel’s parliament when he arrives later today.
In a letter last week inviting Mr Trump to deliver a formal address, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana wrote:
“The people of Israel regard you as the greatest friend and ally of the Jewish nation in modern history.”
Many people who gathered late on Saturday at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square cheered and waved place cards in praise of Mr Trump during a speech by his special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Israelis have praised the president for his effort in the peace plan. (Reuters: Hannah McKay)
However, the mention of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s involvement in the ceasefire effort sparked a different reaction from the crowd: booing.
Israeli critics of Netanyahu, including hostages’ families, accuse him of deliberately prolonging the conflict to placate his far-right government coalition partners, whose backing is crucial to his political survival.
Reporting with AP
3h agoMon 13 Oct 2025 at 1:11am
Netanyahu calls hostage return ‘historic’
Benjamin Netanyahu says the hostage return is “an historic event”. (Reuters: Abir Sultan)
Earlier this morning, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the hostage return “an historic event” in a televised address.
“This is an historic event that is teamed with sadness over the release of murderers and joy over the return of our hostages.
“This is an historic event that some did not believe would happen. Our fighters believed, many in the nation believed and I believed.
“Tomorrow is the beginning of a new path. A path of building, a path of healing, and I hope — a path of uniting hearts.”
He also thanked the Israeli military and the families who lost loved ones.
An expected 20 surviving Israeli hostages must be released by Hamas by roughly 8pm AEDT at the latest under the peace plan.