Pained and angered by deadly clashes between Islamist and Druze gunmen in Syria in recent weeks, leaders of Israel's own Druze minority say the Israeli military was right to intervene to defend the Druze and should do so again if violence restarts.

A senior Hamas official tells Newsweek that the Palestinian militant group saw "positive" potential in signs of a growing rift between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after offering the U.S. leader a political win in the form of an American hostage release ahead of his Middle East trip.

One in five people in the Gaza Strip are facing starvation as the entire territory edges closer to famine, a new United Nations-backed report warns, after nearly three months of Israel’s blockade of critically needed humanitarian aid.

New Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand accused Israel on Wednesday of using a lack of food as a political tool in its Gaza operation and urged further work on a ceasefire with Hamas, the militant group that controls the Palestinian enclave.

The United Nations’ top humanitarian official blasted Israel for “deliberately and unashamedly” imposing inhumane conditions on Palestinians that include the risk of famine.

Hamas rejected Witkoff's framework last month, backing Israel's proposal to release 10 hostages in exchange for 45 days. Israeli hostages can be released if the Israeli government agrees to end the war, fully withdraw from Gaza, and allow for the reconstruction of Gaza.

U.S. President Donald Trump met with Syria's president in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and urged him to normalise ties with longtime foe Israel, after a surprise U.S. announcement that it would lift all sanctions on the Islamist-led government.