Hamas and Israel have agreed to extend the four-day ceasefire by 48 hours under a pact brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and the US. The truce was scheduled to expire this morning but will now last through to Thursday after Hamas agreed to release more hostages. The extended truce will allow for the entry of more aid into Gaza.

So far: Since the ceasefire went into effect on Friday, Hamas have released 69 hostages — between Israelis and foreign nationals — in exchange for Israel releasing 150 Palestinians. Yesterday, the Palestinian armed group freed 11 people in return for Israel releasing 33 Palestinians. Hamas is believed to have more than 240 hostages. The truce is now scheduled to end at 7am Thursday.

An extended truce is great but it is not enough to meet Gaza’s huge aid needs: “Even with that additional amount of time, it will be impossible to satisfy all the dramatic needs of the population,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters yesterday. The truce has allowed critical relief into northern Gaza, which has been largely cut off in the weeks of Israeli siege, but it “barely registers against the huge needs of 1.7 mn displaced people,” he said.

DIPLOMACY- US Secretary of State Blinken will visit Israel, the West Bank, and the UAE this week | A US Democratic senator suggested conditioning aid to Israel on compliance with international law | El Sisi and the president of Hungary discussed de-escalating the conflict.

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