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TNA’s live coverage of the latest from the war on Gaza concludes for today. Join us again at 0800 GMT for updates from the besieged Palestinian enclave.

 Israel prepared on Saturday to receive six more hostages from Gaza in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian captives, after accusations over the return of a misidentified body this week threatened to derail a fragile truce.

The six, the last living hostages from a group of 33 due to be freed in the first stage of the ceasefire deal agreed last month, were expected to be handed over at around 8.30 a.m. (0630 GMT), according to officials from the group Hamas.

Four of the hostages, Eliya Cohen, 27, Tal Shoham, 40, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Omer Wenkert, 23, were seized by Hamas gunmen during their attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

Another two, Hisham Al-Sayed, 36, and Avera Mengistu, 39, have been held by Hamas since they entered Gaza separately under unexplained circumstances around a decade ago.

In return, Israel is expected to release 602 Palestinian prisoners and detainees held in its jails in the latest stage of an exchange that has held up despite a series of problems that have come close to sinking it on different occasions.

Late on Thursday, Israel accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire by handing over an unidentified body instead of the remains of hostage Shiri Bibas that were due to be returned along with the bodies of her two small sons.

The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed Friday that it had transferred more human remains to the Israeli authorities, but was not able to say if they included the body of hostage Shiri Bibas.

"Tonight, at the request of the parties, an ICRC team received human remains, which were then transferred to Israeli authorities," a spokesman told news agency AFP.

"The ICRC can not confirm any additional details."

Francesca Albanese has criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing war crimes allegations at the International Criminal Court (ICC), for continuing his "unlawful actions."

The UN special rapporteur made the remark in a post on X, referencing Netanyahu’s takeover of a home in the occupied West Bank earlier today alongside Israeli soldiers.

"These actions are leading Israel to a troubling point in history," Albanese wrote.

She stressed the need for accountability, stating, "It’s crucial for [international] law to be enforced, holding Israel accountable, starting with its leaders."

Israeli PM , wanted by the ICC for war crimes and crimes against humanity, persists in unlawful actions, now in full swing in the occupied West Bank. These actions are leading Israel to a troubling point in history.
It's crucial for int'l law to be enforced, holding…

— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs)

Defence for Children International- Palestine (DCIP) has criticised the Israeli military over the killing of two Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank.

The organisation stated that the children, who were killed in Jenin and Hebron, were shot in the back without warning by Israeli soldiers positioned inside armoured vehicles.

DCIP’s Ayed Abu Eqtaish said, "Israeli forces have nothing but contempt for Palestinian children’s lives and systemic impunity means they will face no consequences."

He further condemned the lack of international action, stating, "It is outrageous that world leaders have allowed Israel to kill Palestinian children with such cruelty with no accountability."

Israeli forces fatally shot two Palestinian children in the back today in the occupied West Bank. Soldiers fired on both children from inside armored military vehicles.

Ayman Al-Hemouni, 12, in Hebron and Rimas Ammouri, 13, in Jenin.

Read more:

— Defense for Children (@DCIPalestine)

The body collected by the Red Cross from Hamas in the Gaza Strip is expected to be handed over to Israeli troops around 12:30 am (local time), according to the Times of Israel.

Israeli police are preparing to escort the military convoy carrying the body to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv for identification.

Hamas has claimed that the body belongs to hostage Shiri Bibas.

Thousands of Hezbollah supporters have gathered in Beirut to pay their respects at the funeral of Hassan Nasrallah, the group's long-time leader, who was assassinated last September in an Israeli strike on southern Beirut.

Nasrallah, a founding member of Hezbollah, led the movement for more than three decades before being killed, along with other senior officials, during Israel’s ongoing conflict with the group.

The funeral ceremony will take place on Sunday at Beirut’s main sports stadium, followed by his burial.

The BBC has taken down its documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone from its iPlayer service after it was revealed that the film’s teenage narrator is the son of a Hamas official.

The broadcaster said it is conducting "further due diligence" following increasing scrutiny.

The documentary, which aired on BBC Two on Monday, features 13-year-old Abdullah al-Yazouri describing life in Gaza. However, it later emerged that his father, Ayman al-Yazouri, is Hamas’s deputy minister of agriculture.

In a statement, the BBC defended the documentary’s value but acknowledged concerns, stating: "There have been continuing questions raised about the programme, and in light of these, we are conducting further due diligence with the production company."

Genocide apologists are trying to get the BBC to remove the documentary 'Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone' from iPlayer.

Here are some clips from the film (all the footage was filmed by two Palestinian cameramen in Gaza)

— Saul Staniforth (@SaulStaniforth)

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his South African counterpart Ronald Lamola in Johannesburg during a G20 foreign ministers' meeting, according to Turkish diplomatic sources.

Their discussions included the latest developments in Gaza and South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

The Israeli military admitted on Friday that it was aware the Bibas family had died in captivity in Gaza, despite previously suggesting they might still be alive.

Hamas claimed in November 2023 that Shiri Bibas, 32, and her two children, four-year-old Ariel and nine-month-old Kfir, were killed in an Israeli airstrike.

However, Israel continued to call for their release as though they were alive.

Military spokesperson Daniel Hagari confirmed on Friday that the two children had died "no later than November 2023" after their bodies were returned by Hamas under the ceasefire agreement.

Speaking at a news conference, Hagari stated that Israeli intelligence had already determined their deaths but had refrained from making it public.

The Red Cross has confirmed receiving a coffin from Hamas, which the Gaza-based group claims contains the body of Shiri Bibas, according to Al Jazeera English.

The Israeli military is set to take custody of the coffin once coordination is finalised.

Further updates to follow.

The Israeli military said on Friday it is checking reports that Hamas has handed the Red Cross a body said to be that of hostage Shiri Bibas.

In a post on X, the Israeli military stated that it is looking into the reports.

"[Israeli army] representatives are in contact with the family," the statement read.

UK foreign minister David Lammy on Friday denounced the "sick and abhorrent" killing of two young Israeli boys held in Gaza, and demanded Hamas return their mother's body.

Israel announced earlier on Friday that a body received from the Palestinian operatives on Thursday was not that of the boys' mother, Shiri Bibas.

Lammy said on X: "Her body must be returned. The hostages must be released. This nightmare must end."

The vile killing of the Bibas children by Hamas terrorists is sick and abhorrent, as is the failure to return the body of their mother Shiri to the grieving family. Her body must be returned. The hostages must be released. This nightmare must end.

— David Lammy (@DavidLammy)

The head of Gaza’s Government Media Office has accused Israel of committing more than 350 breaches of the ceasefire agreement signed on 15 January.

In a statement, Ismail al-Thawabteh said these violations highlight Israel’s "ongoing failure to uphold its commitments and defiance of the international community."

Since the agreement, Israeli air strikes- carried out by fighter jets and drones- have killed and injured dozens of Palestinians, while direct shootings and drone attacks have also been reported.

Further violations include Israeli incursions into border areas east of the Gaza Strip.

The Central Emergency Committee in Rafah has noted continued Israeli military activity in the central and western parts of the city in recent days.

Hamas has also accused Israel of multiple ceasefire breaches, including delaying the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza, obstructing the entry of shelter supplies, and slowing the arrival of medical aid.

Palestinian media has reported a series of updates from the West Bank, amid Israel's ongoing attacks on the occupied territory.

Israeli forces have raided the town of Yatma, south of Nablus, entering the area amid gunfire and tear gas, according to the head of the Yatma village council.

In Kafr Qaddum, east of Qalqilya, a Palestinian child has been wounded by rubber-coated metal bullets, while dozens of others have suffered from tear gas inhalation during clashes with Israeli soldiers, the Wafa news agency reports.

The Israeli army has stormed the town of Qusra, near Nablus, deploying heavy gunfire and tear gas, according to Wafa.

Meanwhile, in the northern Jordan Valley, a Palestinian man was arrested while tending to his livestock, local sources told Wafa.

A Palestinian paramedic speaks about the killing of 13-year-old Remas Al-Amouri after being shot by Israeli occupation forces near Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank earlier today.

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen)

The Palestinian foreign ministry has condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's orders to intensify attacks in the occupied West Bank.

Syrian Interim Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani has received an invitation to visit Iraq with the date to be determined later after consultations on the agenda, Syria's state news agency SANA said on Friday.

Two Iraqi sources had told Reuters earlier in the day that Shibani would pay an official visit to Baghdad on Saturday.

SANA said that during the visit issues of common interest would be addressed to open a new page in bilateral ties, after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad by rebels in December after more than 13 years of war.

Syria's new President Ahmed al-Sharaa met China's ambassador to Damascus in the first public engagement between the two countries since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December, Syrian state media said on Friday.

Syria's state news agency SANA reported Sharaa's meeting with Ambassador Shi Hongwei but gave no details of what was discussed.

Israel's Bibas family accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday of failing to protect their loved ones during Hamas's 2023 attack and of failing to bring them home.

The family's comments were their first since Israel announced that a body received from Hamas on Thursday was not that of Shiri Bibas as claimed by the Palestinian group.

Shiri's sister-in-law, Ofri Bibas, charged that Israeli authorities, particularly the prime minister, had failed to protect the hostages and had abandoned them.

"It was Israel's responsibility and obligation to bring them back alive," she said in a statement released on behalf the family through an Israeli campaign group, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

"There is no forgiveness for abandoning them on October 7, and no forgiveness for abandoning them in captivity. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, we did not receive an apology from you in this painful moment," she said.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani will head to Baghdad on Saturday for the first official visit to the country, two Iraqi sources told Reuters.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi left Saudi Arabia on Friday after participating in an informal meeting to discuss the Israel-Palestinian conflict with Gulf Arab states and Jordan, the presidency said in a statement.

The meeting takes place as Arab countries rush to formulate an alternative to US President Donald Trump's plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza and resettle most of them in Jordan and Egypt.

The autopsy carried out by the Israeli military on Yahya Sinwar's body has shown no evidence that the deceased Hamas leader used drugs.

Forensic tests confirmed that Sinwar's blood didn't contain any traces of drugs but that he had consumed a significant amount of caffeine before he was killed in October, according to Israeli media reports.

Israel has in the past alleged that Sinwar and other Hamas fighters have used the captagon, a type of amphetamine that fighters in Syria and Iraq have used to increase battlefield performance.

Read the full story here

Breaking | According to local sources, Israeli settler mobs stormed Yatta city, south of Hebron, burning a Palestinian vehicle and vandalizing properties with racist slogans.

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen)

Ireland's largest opposition party Sinn Fein said Friday it will skip a traditional St Patrick's Day visit to the White House in protest at US President Trump's proposals for Gaza.

Leader Mary Lou McDonald said in Dublin that she could not visit Washington "while there was a threat of mass expulsion hanging over the Palestinian people."

"There is an onus on us to act when we believe the US administration is wrong, catastrophically so in the case of Palestine," said McDonald at a joint press conference with party colleague Michelle O'Neill, Northern Ireland's First Minister.

Irish government and opposition politicians are traditionally invited to the White House each year on or around St. Patrick's Day - Ireland's national day on March 17 - and see the festivities as an occasion for diplomatic networking.

But Trump's comments on the "forced expulsion of the Palestinian people of Gaza cannot be ignored," said O'Neill, who is also vice-president of the pro-Irish unity party.

Sinn Fein's decision not to visit places pressure on Taoiseach (prime minister) Micheal Martin, who is expected to go ahead with meeting Trump at the White House, but has yet to be formally invited.

Hamas said on Friday that Israel is expected to free 602 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Saturday's hostage-prisoner exchange, the group's prisoner media office reported.

The armed wing of Hamas said on Friday it will release Israeli hostages Eliya Cohen, Omer Shem Tov, Tal Shoham, Omer Wenkert, Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mengisto on Saturday.

Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mengisto are civilians, who entered Gaza a decade ago and have been held there since.

Hamas rejected on Friday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "threats" to make the Palestinian group pay after he accused it of violating the ceasefire by not returning the hostage Shiri Bibas.

"We reject the threats issued by Benjamin Netanyahu as part of his attempts to improve his image," Hamas said in a statement and called on Israeli authorities to return the body of a Gazan woman that the group had handed over on Thursday, claiming it was that of Bibas.

The movement affirmed its "seriousness and full commitment" to its responsibilities under the ceasefire, and said it had "no interest in failing to comply or holding on to any bodies."

However, it admitted "the possibility of an error or mix-up of bodies," which it attributed to Israeli bombing of the area where the Bibas family was located along with other Palestinians.

Hamas said it would inform mediators of the results of its "investigation and examination" into the circumstances of the body's return.

The Red Cross is "concerned and unsatisfied" by the way Hamas captive release operations have taken place, it told Reuters on Friday after the Israeli military said one of the returned bodies did not belong to any of the captives held in Gaza.

Two of the four bodies handed over on Thursday were identified as infant Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel, while a third body that was supposed to be their mother, Shiri, was found not to match with any captive and remained unidentified, the military said.

"The ICRC does not participate in sorting, screening, or examining the deceased - this is the responsibility of the parties to the conflict", it said in a statement on Friday, while expressing concern that the releases had not been conducted privately and in a dignified manner.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday ordered an "intensive operation against centers of terrorism" in the occupied West Bank, his office said, after three buses exploded in central Israel without causing any reported injuries.

Three devices detonated on buses in the city of Bat Yam on Thursday evening and two others were being defused, according to police, with Israel's defence minister accusing "Palestinian terrorist" groups of being behind the blasts.

Netanyahu's office said on social media early Friday that he had completed a security assessment with top officials, ordering fresh "counterterrorism operations" as well as stepped up security in Israeli cities.

"The Prime Minister also ordered the Israel Police and the ISA (internal security agency) to increase preventative activity against additional attacks in Israeli cities," Netanyahu's office said on X.

Arab leaders were gathering in Saudi Arabia on Friday to hammer out a recovery plan for Gaza aimed at countering President Donald Trump's proposal for US control of the territory and the expulsion of its people.

"We're at a very important historic juncture in the Arab-Israeli or Israeli-Palestinian conflict... where potentially the United States under Trump could create new facts on the ground that are irreversible," Andreas Krieg, a King's College London expert said.

A source close to the Saudi government told AFP that Arab leaders would discuss "a reconstruction plan to counter Trump's plan for Gaza".

A Hamas official told AFP on Friday that it was likely the body of captive Shiri Bibas had been "mistakenly mixed" with others who were killed and buried under the rubble in Gaza.

"It is likely that Mrs Bibas' body was mistakenly mixed with others found under the rubble," the official said on condition of anonymity, adding that the group was "investigating" the issue.

This came after Israel stated that one of the bodies handed over by Hamas on Thursday was not that of Bibas, as the Palestinian group had claimed.