Qatar says a deal is reached to release an Israeli hostage and allow Palestinians into northern Gaza

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Qatar announced early Monday that an agreement has been reached to release an Israeli civilian hostage and allow Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, easing the first major crisis of the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The statement from Qatar, a mediator in ceasefire talks, said Hamas will hand over the civilian hostage, Arbel Yehoud, along with two other hostages before Friday. And on Monday, Israeli authorities will allow Palestinians to return to northern Gaza.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement said the hostage release — which will include soldier Agam Berger — will take place on Thursday, and confirmed that Palestinians can move north on Monday. Israel’s military said people can start crossing on foot at 7 a.m.

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel on Saturday was to begin allowing Palestinians to return to northern Gaza. But Israel put that on hold because of Yehoud, who Israel said should have been released on Saturday. Hamas accused Israel of violating the agreement.

The release of Yehoud and two others is in addition to the one already set for next Saturday, when three hostages should be released.

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22 reported killed in Lebanon before agreement to extend deadline for Israeli forces to withdraw

MAYS AL-JABAL, Lebanon (AP) — Israeli forces in southern Lebanon on Sunday opened fire on protesters demanding their withdrawal in line with a ceasefire agreement, killing at least 22 and injuring 124, Lebanese health officials reported.

Hours later, the White House said Sunday that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to extend the deadline for Israeli troops to depart southern Lebanon until Feb. 18, after Israel requested more time to withdraw beyond the 60-day deadline stipulated in a ceasefire agreement that halted the Israel-Hezbollah war in late November.

Israel has said that it needs to stay longer because the Lebanese army has not deployed to all areas of southern Lebanon to ensure that Hezbollah does not reestablish its presence in the area. The Lebanese army has said it cannot deploy until Israeli forces withdraw.

The White House said in a statement that “the arrangement between Lebanon and Israel, monitored by the United States, will continue to be in effect until February 18, 2025.” It added that the respective governments “will also begin negotiations for the return of Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023.”

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government, but Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati confirmed the extension.

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South Korean prosecutors indict impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his martial law

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean prosecutors on Sunday indicted impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on rebellion in connection with his short-lived imposition of martial law, a criminal charge that could incur the death penalty or life imprisonment if convicted.

This is the latest blow to Yoon, who was impeached and arrested over his Dec. 3 martial law decree that plunged the country into political turmoil, shook its financial markets and hurt its international image. Separate from criminal judicial proceedings, the Constitutional Court is now deliberating whether to formally dismiss Yoon as president or reinstate him.

Yoon has become South Korea’s first president who has been indicted while in office. He will remain jailed and be escorted from a detention facility to a Seoul court for hearings in the trial, which is expected to last about six months.

Prosecutors said in a statement that they indicted Yoon on charges that he directed a rebellion when he imposed martial law. Investigative authorities have earlier alleged that Yoon’s imposition of martial law amounted to rebellion, because he staged riots with the purpose of undermining the constitution.

Yoon's defense team lashed out at the indictment, calling it “the worst decision” by prosecutors who they say are trying to curry favor with political forces who want Yoon's exit.

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Democrats are splintered on immigration and how to respond to Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Donald Trump took office in 2017 with promises to crack down on immigration, he was met by widespread protests that filled churches, airports and union halls as Democratic lawmaker vowed to fight the new Republican president at every turn.

The second time around, Democrats helped send an immigration bill to his desk during his first week in office.

Stinging from election losses, the Democratic Party has so far been splintered in responding to Trump's push against illegal immigration. Yet the party’s soul searching comes as the stakes could hardly be higher. The new president is acting to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border border to asylum seekers and deport millions of immigrants who do not have permanent legal status.

“I think Donald Trump has painted the Democratic Party into a corner on immigration, and it’s going to take us a while to get out of the corner,” said Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. “I want us acting out of conviction about what we believe about immigration rather than out of fear."

On Capitol Hill, a crucial faction of Democrats are looking for places of agreement with Trump.

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As Hegseth takes charge at the Pentagon, here's what changes could be in store

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth starts his first official day on Monday morning, he will face a daunting array of issues to tackle — from global conflicts and border security to administrative tasks.

At the top of his list is addressing President Donald Trump's priority to strengthen the U.S. military presence along the southern border and reviewing whether active-duty forces should be used for law enforcement — something done rarely.

Dozens of other issues will compete for his attention, including developing the Pentagon's massive budget, decisions about aid to Ukraine, support for the ceasefire in Gaza, troop deployments in the Middle East. Not to mention Trump directives to rid the federal government of diversity programs and personnel as well as moves to cut waste and remove any lingering Biden administration backers.

In a message to the force shortly after he was sworn in Saturday, Hegseth cited the challenges he sees ahead. Some are ones his predecessors also faced, such as reorienting the military from decades of a Mideast focus and better deterring China. Continued conflict in the region, including the October 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, has made that shift impossible to execute.

Hegseth also told service members about other priorities, including strengthening the defense industrial base and getting the Pentagon to pass an audit, while ensuring that the U.S. remains “the strongest and most lethal force in the world."

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Belarus strongman wins a 7th term in an election the opposition calls a farce

The smiling face of President Alexander Lukashenko gazed out from campaign posters across Belarus on Sunday as the country held an orchestrated election virtually guaranteed to give the 70-year-old autocrat yet another term on top of his three decades in power.

“Needed!” the posters proclaim beneath a photo of Lukashenko, his hands clasped together. The phrase is what groups of voters responded in campaign videos after supposedly being asked if they wanted him to serve again.

And according to a nighttime statement by the Central Election Commission, the strongman leader won by a landslide, garnering nearly 87% percent of the vote.

But his opponents, many of whom are imprisoned or exiled abroad by his unrelenting crackdown on dissent and free speech, would disagree. They call the election a sham — much like the last one in 2020 that triggered months of protests that were unprecedented in the history of the country of 9 million people.

The crackdown saw more than 65,000 arrests, with thousands beaten, bringing condemnation and sanctions from the West.

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Top Trump administration officials in Chicago for start of immigration enforcement crackdown

CHICAGO (AP) — Top Trump administration officials, including “border czar” Tom Homan and the acting deputy attorney general, visited Chicago on Sunday to witness the start of ramped-up immigration enforcementin the nation’s third-largest city as federal agencies touted arrests around the country.

Few details of the operation were immediately made public, including the number of arrests. But the sheer number of federal agencies involved showed President Donald Trump's willingness to use federal law enforcement beyond the Department of Homeland Security to carry out his long-promised mass deportations.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement said it made 956 arrests nationwide on Sunday and 286 on Saturday. While some of the operations may not have been unusual, ICE averaged 311 daily arrests in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.

Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said he observed immigration agents from the DHS along with agents from the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. He didn’t offer details on the operation, which came days after DHS expanded immigration authority to agencies in the Department of Justice, including the DEA and ATF.

“We will support everyone at the federal, state, and local levels who joins this critical mission to take back our communities,” Bove said in a statement. “We will use all available tools to address obstruction and other unlawful impediments to our efforts to protect the homeland. Most importantly, we will not rest until the work is done.”

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Alaskans say Trump can change the name of Denali but can't make people call it Mount McKinley

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — North America’s tallest peak is a focal point of Jeff King’s life.

The four-time winner of the 1,000-mile (1,609-kilometer) Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race operates his kennel and mushing tourism business just 8 miles (12.87 kilometers) from Denali National Park and Preserve’s entrance, and the 20,310-foot (6,190-meter) mountain looms large as he trains his dogs on nearby trails.

King and many others who live in the mountain’s shadow say most Alaskans will never stop calling the peak Denali, its Alaska Native name, despite President Donald Trump’s executive order that the name revert to Mount McKinley -- an identifier inspired by President William McKinley, who was from Ohio and never set foot in Alaska.

For many who live near Denali, Trump’s suggestion was peculiar.

“I don’t know a single person that likes the idea, and we’re pretty vocal about it,” King said. “Denali respects the Indigenous people that have been here and around Denali for tens of thousands of years.”

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Jannik Sinner beats Alexander Zverev in 3 sets for his second Australian Open title in a row

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — There's all sorts of ways beyond merely the score to measure just how dominant Jannik Sinner was while outplaying and frustrating Alexander Zverev during the 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory Sunday that earned the 23-year-old Italian a second consecutive Australian Open championship.

The zero break points Sinner faced. Or the 10 he accumulated. The 27-13 advantage in points that lasted at least nine strokes. Or the way Sinner accumulated more winners, 32 to 25, and fewer unforced errors, 27 to 45. The way Sinner won 10 of the 13 points that ended with him at the net. Or the way he only let Zverev go 14 of 27 in that category, frequently zipping passing shots out of reach.

Well, here's is one more bit of evidence: what Zverev said about Sinner.

“I’m serving better than him, but that’s it. He does everything else better than me. He moves better than me. He hits his forehand better than me. He hits his backhand better than me. He returns better than me. He volleys better than me,” Zverev said. “At the end of the day, tennis has five or six massive shots — like, massive factors — and he does four or five of them better than me. That’s the reason why he won.”

High praise from a guy who is, after all, ranked No. 2. Sinner has held the No. 1 spot since last June and is not showing any signs of relinquishing it. This was the first Australian Open final between the men at No. 1 and No. 2 since 2019, when No. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated No. 2 Rafael Nadal — also in straight sets.

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Hurts, Barkley each rush for 3 TDs to help Eagles reach Super Bowl with 55-23 win over Commanders

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Saquon Barkley consulted with his family before the star running back decided — yes, it was time to leave his only professional home with the Giants and sign with the Eagles.

His youngest daughter, Jada, had one question for dad as he told her the family was headed to Philadelphia.

Does this mean dad will win now?

As Barkley lay on a football field littered with confetti and cradled his daughter against his chest, the answer was undeniable: You bet Barkley and the Eagles are going to win now — with a chance at the biggest one of the season still ahead with a date in the Super Bowl.

Barkley dashed 60 yards for a touchdown on Philadelphia’s first play and finished with 118 yards and three scores, Jalen Hurts rushed for three TDs and the Eagles soared into the Super Bowl with a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

News from © The Associated Press, 2025