Palestinians return to destroyed Gaza homes as ceasefire holds

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Three Qatari diplomats were killed in a car crash in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, two security sources told Reuters on Sunday.

Two diplomats were also wounded, the security sources said.

The Egyptian city is set to host on Monday a global summit aimed at finalising an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza.

🚨🇪🇬🇶🇦 BREAKING: 3 QATARI PEACE NEGOTIATORS KILLED IN EGYPT CRASH

A horrific car accident near Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, has killed 3 Qatari diplomats and injured 3 others.

Early reports say the victims were members of the Qatari Prime Minister’s negotiation team, in the region… https://t.co/LlJHphW9Uc pic.twitter.com/1vSWAGTCzh

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 11, 2025

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will attend an international summit in Egypt next week chaired by US President Donald Trump on his peace plan for Gaza, a UN spokesman said Saturday.

Guterres "is traveling to Egypt to attend on Monday the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit for Peace," his spokesman's office said, adding that Guterres will return to UN headquarters on Wednesday.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will on Monday attend a Middle East peace summit for the signing ceremony of the Gaza deal, his office said, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

"The Prime Minister will travel to Egypt to attend the Sharm El-Sheikh Peace Summit on Monday," Downing Street said Saturday, referring to the seaside town in Egypt. US President Donald Trump is also expected to attend.

"He will attend the signing ceremony of the peace plan for Gaza - marking a historic turning point for the region after two years of conflict and bloodshed," it said.

Iran's foreign minister said on Saturday that Russia had relayed a message from Israel that it was not looking for a new war with the Islamic republic.

"Apparently three or four days ago there was a telephone call between (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin," Abbas Araghchi said. "Netanyahu emphasised that he had no intention of restarting a war with Iran," he said, adding that the message was relayed to Tehran's ambassador in Russia.

A top Hamas official told AFP Saturday that the release of 48 mostly Israeli captives held by Palestinian militants in Gaza would begin on Monday morning.

"According to the signed agreement, the prisoner exchange is set to begin on Monday morning as agreed, and there are no new developments on this matter," Osama Hamdan said in an interview to AFP.

Following the return of the captives from Gaza, Israel will proceed with the release of about 2,000 Palestinian detainees from its prisons, according to the terms of the first stage of a ceasefire deal signed by the two parties under US mediation.

Egypt will host an international summit in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday to finalise an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, an Egyptian presidential spokesperson said on Saturday.

The summit will be attended by more than 20 leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, the spokesperson added in a statement.

Iraq on Saturday criticised US sanctions on a company, individuals and armed groups Washington has said have ties with Iran-backed militias, calling the move "deeply regrettable".

"The Government of Iraq views this unilateral action as deeply regrettable, as it contradicts the spirit of friendship and mutual respect that has long characterised the bilateral relationship between the two countries," Iraqi government spokesman Basim Alawadi said in a statement.

"Taking such a decision without prior consultation or dialogue represents a negative precedent in the approach to relations between allied nations," he added.

The US government on Thursday announced sanctions on the Al-Muhandis company, a firm with links to the Hashed al-Shaabi or the Popular Mobilisation Force (PMF), armed groups trained by Iran during the war against the Islamic State group.

Washington also targeted individuals and other Iraqi militias the US Treasury said had aided Tehran in "evading US sanctions, smuggling weapons, and engaging in widespread corruption in Iraq".

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Saturday that Tehran welcomes a potential "fair and balanced" U.S. nuclear proposal but sees no reason for talks with European powers.

Speaking to Iranian state TV, Araqchi said that Tehran and Washington are exchanging messages through mediators, but added that Iran had not received any request for nuclear negotiations from any country so far.

Iran described on Saturday the possibility, suggested by U.S. President Donald Trump, that it could normalise relations with Israel as "wishful thinking."

Late last month, Trump said: "Who knows, maybe even Iran can get in there," referring to the Abraham Accords — a controversial peace agreement signed during Trump's first term under which Israel normalised diplomatic relations with four Muslim-majority nations.

"Iran will never recognise an occupier regime that has committed genocide and killed children," Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told Iranian state television.

Iran on Saturday said it did not have confidence that Israel would respect the terms of a Gaza ceasefire that began a day earlier, following two years of war.

"We warn about the tricks and betrayals of the Zionist regime (Israel) regarding previous agreements... There is absolutely no trust in the Zionist regime," said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, pointing to previous ceasefires that have been violated, including in Lebanon.

US envoy Steve Witkoff said Israeli captives held in Gaza were coming home, in a message at a rally Saturday, as a ceasefire took hold in the Palestinian territory.

"To the hostages themselves: you are coming home," Witkoff said, prompting applause and cheers from thousands gathered at the Tel Aviv plaza known as Hostages' Square.

Addressing the families of the hostages, he added: "Your courage has moved the world."

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will meet Syrian officials, in Ankara on Sunday, Turkish Foreign Ministry said.

Defence Minister Yasar Guler, intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin, and their Syrian counterparts will attend the security cooperation meeting, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Security cooperation between Turkey and Syria will be discussed, it added. Fidan urged Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces on Wednesday to abandon their "separatist agenda", a day after the group's leader and Syria's government announced a ceasefire.

Negotiations over phase two of US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan will be complex and difficult, a senior Hamas official told AFP on Saturday.

"The second phase of the Trump plan, as it is clear from the points themselves, contains many complexities and difficulties," political bureau member Hossam Badran said in an interview.

The proposal for Hamas members to leave the Gaza Strip under US President Donald Trump's peace plan is "absurd", a senior official from the Palestinian militant group told AFP on Saturday.

"Talk about expelling Palestinians, whether they're Hamas members or not, from their land is absurd and nonsense," political bureau member Hossam Badran said in an interview.

The Israeli military said that US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited the Gaza Strip on Saturday, as a ceasefire announced by Israel entered its second day.

Israel's army chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir conducted a field tour in Gaza with "US envoy to the Middle East, Mr Steven 'Steve' Witkoff, Mr Jared Kushner, and the Commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), Admiral Brad Cooper," the Israeli military said in a statement.

Hamas is ready to fight back if US President Donald Trump's peace deal unravels and hostilities with Israel resume in the Gaza Strip, a senior official told AFP on Saturday.

"We hope that we will not return to (war), but our Palestinian people and the resistance force will undoubtedly confront and use all their capabilities to repel this aggression if this battle is imposed," political bureau member Hossam Badran told AFP.

French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Egypt on Monday to back the Gaza ceasefire deal brokered by the United States, and to discuss implementation of its next phases, the Elysee Palace said.

The French presidency did not say whether Macron would be meeting with US President Donald Trump, who will also be in Egypt and who brokered the deal agreed by Israel and Hamas.

Gaza's civil defence agency on Saturday said more than 500,000 people have returned to Gaza City since a ceasefire took effect the previous day.

"More than half a million people have returned to Gaza (City) since yesterday," said Mahmud Bassal, a spokesman for the civil defence, a rescue service operating under Hamas authority.

Hamas's disarmament as part of US President Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza is "out of the question", a Hamas official told AFP on Saturday.

"The proposed weapons handover is out of the question and not negotiable," the official said.

The US president has indicated the issue of Hamas surrendering its weapons would be addressed in the second phase of the peace plan.

Israel has begun transferring prisoners to two jails ahead of their release as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal, designed to lead to the release of hostages held by Hamas, the prison service said Saturday.

Thousands of staff, including prison officers, "operated throughout the night in order to implement the government's decision: 'The framework for the release of all Israeli hostages'," a statement said.

Under the truce deal Israel is supposed to release 250 prisoners, including some serving life sentences for deadly attacks. In exchange, Hamas has until Monday to hand over its 48 remaining Israeli hostages -- living and dead.

Israeli forces have killed at least one person after striking a vehicle in Qalaouiyeh in southern Lebanon, less than 24 hours after killing another man and injuring several others in a similar strike in Al-Msyaleh.

Images shared online show the vehicle charred and burned.

مراسلة «الأخبار»: إصابة مواطن جراء استهداف سيارة على طريق قلاويه pic.twitter.com/wlhkoQEJgH

— جريدة الأخبار - Al-Akhbar (@AlakhbarNews) October 11, 2025

At least 151 bodies of Palestinians killed in Gaza, as well as 72 wounded people, have been brought to hospitals over the past day, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

The ministry said 116 of the bodies belonged to people killed in the earlier days of the war and were recovered from under the rubble in the last 24 hours.

The US' top military commander visited Gaza on Saturday a the ceasefire takes hold, reaffirms no US troop deployment there.

Italy said it is working with the United States to "implement" President Donald Trump's 20-step peace plan for Gaza, FM Antonio Tajani said, following a phone call with his US counterpart Marco Rubio. 

"We are working together for the rapid implementation of President Trump's peace plan, which also includes the prompt return of the hostages. I congratulated the US for its effective action, a major political and diplomatic success," Tajani said.

"Italy will continue its humanitarian commitment to assist the Palestinian population and will work to ensure Israel's security. The Italian government will be fully committed to working alongside the United States and other European and regional partners to help create the right conditions for stability. We are ready to  participate with our military in a peace and security mission, and with our businesses to rebuild Gaza, starting with schools and hospitals," he added.

Israeli forces on Saturday have reportedly killed one Palestinian man in the town of Al-Qarara, near Khan Younis, despite a ceasefire in the territory, according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.

More than 300,000 Palestinians have arrived in Gaza City since the ceasefire was declared on Thursday, Gaza's civil defence told Al-Arabiya.

However, there are no tents or homes ready to accommodate citizens returning from the southern areas, the group pointed out.

Israeli authorities are refusing to release Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital who was detained by Israeli forces in December 2024 and held since, according to reports.

Dr. Marwan al-Hams, the director of field hospitals in Gaza, who was detained in July, will not be released from Israeli custody.

Israel is obliged to release scores of Palestinians from Gaza detained during the war as part of its ongoing ceasefire deal with Hamas, agreed on since Thursday.

US troops have reportedly started to arrive in Gaza as part of a force tasked with monitoring the recently-implemented ceasefire deal, US media reported.

A 200-strong team will arrive over the weekend, flying in from the US and other bases across the Middle East, according to ABC News.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned Israel on Saturday for carrying out overnight strikes on civilian facilities that the health ministry said killed at least one person.

"Once again, southern Lebanon has been the target of a heinous Israeli aggression against civilian installations -- without justification or pretext," Aoun said.

"The seriousness of this latest attack lies in the fact that it comes after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza."

The health ministry said an Israeli strike on the Al-Msayleh area left one person dead and seven others wounded.

Lebanon's official National News Agency said Israeli warplanes conducted 10 raids targeting bulldozer and excavator yards.

The Israeli army confirmed it conducted strikes in Lebanon.

In a statement, it said it had "struck and dismantled Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in the area of southern Lebanon, where engineering machinery used to re-establish terrorist infrastructure in the area" was located.

Israeli forces have shot and injured a Palestinian man in the Hebron governorate, occupied West Bank, on Saturday.

The Palestinian was shot in the thigh by Israeli troops while near his home in the village of Tabqa in the town of Dura, southwest of Hebron.  The forces prevented an ambulance from reaching him, leaving him to bleed for an hour before Palestinian Red Crescent crews were able to transport him to Dura Governmental Hospital for treatment.

Additionally, Israeli soldiers arrested six other Palestinians, including two women, during multiple raids across the governorate.