Top U.S. envoys met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday (January 24, 2026) urging his government to move into the second phase of the ceasefire in Gaza.

Mr. Netanyahu met with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and Middle East adviser, according to the Prime Minister’s office, which did not give details.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe the talks, told reporters the envoys had been working closely with Netanyahu on recovering the remains of the last hostage in Gaza, and on the next steps for demilitarising the territory.

The U.S. is anxious to keep the Trump-brokered deal moving, but Mr. Netanyahu faces pressure to wait until Hamas returns the hostage’s remains.

The biggest signal of the second phase would be the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

Ali Shaath, the head of a future technocratic government in Gaza that is expected to run day-to-day affairs, said Thursday (January 22, 2026) the border crossing will open in both directions this coming week. There was no confirmation from Israel, which said it would consider the matter this week. The crossing’s Gaza side is currently under Israeli military control.

The family of Ran Gvili, whose body is still in Gaza, urged more pressure on Hamas. “President Trump himself stated this week in Davos that Hamas knows exactly where our son is being held,” the family said Saturday (January 24, 2026). “Hamas is deceiving the international community and refusing to return our son, the last remaining hostage, in what constitutes a clear violation of the agreement it signed.” Hamas said Wednesday (January 21, 2026) it has provided “all information” it has on Gvili’s remains to ceasefire mediators, and accused Israel of obstructing search efforts in areas it controls in Gaza. The ceasefire took effect on October 10, 2025.

Meaningless truce: On Netanyahu, the Gaza ceasefire

Egypt’s top diplomat pressed for an immediate opening of the Rafah crossing with the director of Mr. Trump’s new Board of Peace in Gaza, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said Saturday (January 24, 2026), including the ability of Palestinians to enter and exit the territory.

Foreign Minister Bader Abdelatty spoke by phone with Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative for Gaza, the ministry said in a statement. They discussed the implementation of the ceasefire’s second phase, including the deployment of an international monitoring force, the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the strip, the statement said.

The Egyptian minister said implementing the second phase is a “key entry point” to launch Gaza’s reconstruction. The statement didn’t say when the crossing will open for travellers and the evacuation of sick and wounded.

Israel is expected to discuss opening the Rafah crossing during Sunday’s (January 25, 2026) Cabinet meeting.

Hamas in a statement on Saturday (January 24, 2026) said a delegation met in Istanbul with the head of Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization about the ceasefire’s second phase and “the fulfillment of the requirements of the first phase.” Two teens killed in Gaza while searching for firewood. Also on Saturday (January 24, 2026), an Israeli strike killed two Palestinian teens in Gaza, according to hospital authorities. The boys, cousins aged 13 and 15, were searching for firewood, according to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, which received the bodies.

The boys were killed in the area that Israel’s military has said is safe for Palestinians, about 500 metres (yards) from the Yellow Line, which separates the Israeli-controlled areas in eastern Gaza from the rest of the strip, said a relative, Arafat al-Zawara.

Israel’s military said it had targeted several militants who crossed the Yellow Line and planted explosives, threatening troops. It denied that those killed were children.

Since the ceasefire, more than 480 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by UN agencies and independent experts. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.

Published – January 25, 2026 08:35 am IST

Smoke and flames rise following an Israeli strike on a residential building, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The Palestinian group Hamas said on Sunday that a new proposal meant to bridge the gaps between Israel and the Islamist armed group over a Gaza ceasefire were too close to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent positions.

Hamas’ statement came only hours after U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Israel in a bid to secure a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, dimming hopes for an imminent breakthrough in negotiations.

Hamas received the new proposal from mediators, Qatar, Egypt and the United States, following a two-day round of talks in Doha.

It said that the new proposal was aligned with Netanyahu, who refuses to end the war and withdraw Israeli forces from Gaza, including from the border with Egypt, two conditions the group sees as the basis for any agreement.

“We hold Netanyahu fully responsible for thwarting the mediators’ efforts, delaying the agreement, and for the lives of his prisoners who are exposed to the same danger as our people due to his ongoing aggression and systematic targeting of all aspects of life in the Gaza Strip,” said Hamas.

“We call on the mediators to assume their responsibilities and compel the occupation to implement what was agreed upon,” Hamas said, adding that it was fully committed to the previous July proposal.