CAIRO -- Hamas confirmed Friday that it will disarm in a potential breakthrough for ending the war in Gaza, but major obstacles remain. There were no U.S. strikes on Iran overnight, but Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had struck another two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, and Kuwait said it intercepted drones.
Here are the most important developments across the Middle East today:
Gaza: Deal reached for Hamas to disarm, Israel to withdraw
Hamas said it will begin disarming as part of a deal announced by U.S. President Donald Trump that also requires Israel to end its strikes and withdraw from Gaza.
Hamas also said that laying down its heavy weapons, which would come later in the process, was contingent on the creation of a Palestinian state, something Israel’s current government adamantly rejects.
Reflecting the hurdles of the potential disarmament, a series of Israeli airstrikes shook Gaza again on Friday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding at least four, including a child, according to officials in hospitals near the attacks. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the agreement, calling it the only good news in recent days from a troubled region. The deal must be implemented “without any questions, skepticism, or determination to undermine it,” he told reporters.
Israel has not officially commented on the Hamas deal, which is part of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire announced last October. That agreement called for Hamas to disarm and hand over power to an independent Palestinian administration. Israel was to withdraw and an International Stabilization Force was to be deployed.
But progress stalled, with Israel saying everything hinged on Hamas disarming, and Hamas accusing Israel of violating the agreement by continuing to carry out regular strikes on Gaza.
The war in Gaza began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry says.
The Associated Press is tracking the progress of Trump’s plan to end the Israel-Hamas war.
Latest developments on the Iran conflict
No U.S. strikes were reported in Iran on Friday. Iran fired drones at Kuwait, a Gulf country hosting U.S. forces, and said it had also fired at oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global oil and gas shipments, which has been largely closed by the fighting.
1. Kuwait’s Defence Ministry said Friday its armed forces had shot down drones inside Kuwaiti airspace. It said the Iranian attacks had targeted several vital military facilities, causing material damage from falling shrapnel but no casualties. It did not specify how many drones were intercepted. Iranian state media said Iran had targeted an air base in Kuwait with drones in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Thursday.
2. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed to have hit two oil tankers attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media said four other tankers had turned around. The report did not provide further details on the tankers’ ownership, or whether there were any casualties.
Elsewhere in the region:
3. Saudi Arabia has announced a plan for a defence alliance of 14 countries to strengthen maritime security, safeguard freedom of navigation and secure international trade routes and energy supply corridors in the Red Sea region. The Iran war has severely disrupted global shipping. Yemen’s Houthi rebels have declared a blockade on Saudi Arabia over a separate but related conflict, putting at risk another major trade corridor.
4. Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said Thursday that the coalition is “defensive in nature,” and that access “remains open to all willing countries.” Oman and the United Arab Emirates were the only two Gulf countries that did not back Saudi Arabia’s statement. Turkiye, Egypt and Pakistan were among those that joined the proposed alliance.
5. A Houthi official, speaking Friday on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief the media, said the Saudi initiative won’t protect its vessels -- that would happen only after the Saudis lift their blockade on Yemen. Large crowds of Yemenis, meanwhile, took to the streets in the capital, Sanaa, and other Houthi-controlled areas to show support for the Iran-backed rebels and their Red Sea attacks against Saudi Arabia. The rallies were organized by the Houthis.
6. In southern Lebanon, Israeli forces set off explosions Friday to destroy an underground tunnel network under the Crusader-built Beaufort Castle that Israel says had been used by Hezbollah militants as a command centre. The 12th-century castle, also known as Al-Shaqif, was seized by Israeli forces in May. It was recently added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List over Israel’s objections.
7. Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun said the Israeli operation sent “negative messages” ahead of upcoming talks in Rome. Israeli and Lebanese negotiating teams are set to meet again there to continue hammering out a plan under which Israel would withdraw from southern Lebanon in exchange for Hezbollah’s disarmament.
By Samy Magdy, Sam Mednick, Jonathan J. Cooper And Matthew Lee
Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel, Cooper from Phoenix, and Lee from Washington. Associated Press writers Farnoush Amiri in New York, Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Danica Kirka in London contributed.
