In a yearly address to diplomats delivered on his behalf by an aide, Francis appeared to reference deaths caused by winter cold in Gaza, where there is almost no electricity.

Pope Francis on Thursday stepped up his recent criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, calling the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave “very serious and

The body of Youssef Ziyadne, and possibly that of his son, was found after a "complex and difficult operation," an official said.

The hostage, Youssef Ziyadne, an Arab Bedouin, was seized along with three grown children on Oct. 7, 2023. Two of them were released, but there is “serious concern” about the fate of the third.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza. Israeli authorities believe at least a third of them were killed in the initial attack or have died in captivity.

The Israeli military will no longer identify its forces by name in the media, “fearing the arrest of soldiers abroad.”