World

Hamas has named six Israeli hostages who are set to be released on Saturday while Israel is expected to release more than 600 Palestinian prisoners as part of a ceasefire agreement between the parties. The hostages due for release are Eliya Cohen, Omer Shem Tov, Tal Shoham, Omer Wenkert, Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mengisto. According

Hamas says the remains of Israeli hostage Shiri Bibas appear to have been mixed with other human remains in what it claims was an “Israeli airstrike”. Israel said the body handed over by Hamas was not Shiri’s, saying it had instead received the remains of an “anonymous body without identification”. Israel today said forensic evidence

Three buses have exploded near Tel Aviv in what Israeli police called a terror incident. An Israeli police spokesperson said two of the explosions were in Bat Yam, located south of Tel Aviv, and a third was reported in the nearby town of Holon. Officers said they also found at least one unexploded device in

The bodies of an Israeli mother and her two children have been handed over by Hamas. Shiri Bibas, four-year-old Ariel, and nine-month-old Kfir were kidnapped from a kibbutz during the militant group’s October 2023 attack. The children’s father, Yarden Bibas, was released on 1 February as part of the ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel.

The risk of the 2024 YR4 asteroid hitting Earth at the end of 2032 has increased again, according to NASA data. Latest calculations have shown a 3.1% chance of the space rock making impact in just under eight years. It is a significant change since the European Space Agency (ESA) estimated in January there was

The Pope spent a peaceful night in hospital and ate breakfast this morning, the Vatican said. It comes after it cancelled the Pope‘s weekend engagements after he was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia. The 88-year-old, who as a young adult developed a case of pleurisy and had part of one of his lungs removed, has been

US and Russian officials have agreed to restore embassy staffing and establish a high-level team to negotiate peace in Ukraine – another sign of the significant American change in diplomatic relations with Moscow.  Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, said the two countries “need to have vibrant diplomatic missions that are able to function

A battle for power is raging in Germany.  For the first time since the Second World War, a far-right party is expected to come second in a federal election and the country is divided. “I come from Jewish heritage so I’m really worried about the safety of my family,” says Shoshana. “I don’t want to

At least 15 people have been injured in a plane crash that’s left a Delta Airlines aircraft upside down at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Images from the airport show the snow-covered plane belly up on the tarmac. The flight – operated by Delta subsidiary Endeavor Air – crashed while landing in Toronto at around 2:45pm

Sir Keir Starmer has said he is prepared to put “our own troops on the ground if necessary” in Ukraine if there is a deal to end the war with Russia. Ahead of an “emergency meeting” of European leaders on Monday, the prime minister said he was “ready and willing” to put British troops into

Not invited to American talks with Russia on the future of Ukraine, European leaders are holding a hastily convened meeting of their own on Monday. After years of exasperation from the US over Europe’s more relaxed attitude to defence spending – nothing quite makes the point about military irrelevance than being left out of the

Two senior US officials are travelling to Saudi Arabia to initiate peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Two sources familiar with the matter told Sky News’ US partner network NBC News that national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy Steve Witkoff are on their way to Saudi. On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said

A man has stabbed six people in southern Austria, including a 14-year-old boy who has died from his injuries. The 23-year-old man attacked six passersby in the city of Villach on Saturday afternoon, according to police. A nearby driver spotted the man and drove into him to halt the attack, police said. Officers said the

A drone with an explosive warhead has smashed a hole in the radiation shield at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine. The plant’s chief engineer, Alexander Titarchuk, said there was a “possibility of a leak of radioactive substances, but the situation is under control”. “The barrier which was supposed to prevent the spread of radioactive

We are witnessing one of the biggest shifts in geopolitics since the Second World War. This week one of the fundamental assumptions underpinning European security was put in doubt. American military might has underwritten the defence of Europe since 1945 – Donald Trump says that can no longer be America’s primary focus. Follow latest: Ukraine

Taken at face value Donald Trump’s embrace of reciprocal tariffs is a declaration of total trade war, that would amount to perhaps the single biggest peacetime shock to global commerce. In promising to levy import taxes on any nation that imposes tariffs or VAT on US exports, he is following through on a campaign promise

You should always give peace a chance. That US President Donald Trump “thinks out of the box” is already the cliche of the moment. And he may bring a fresh way of thinking and a new energy to ending Russia’s war in Ukraine where others have failed. But there are some ominous signs already, bolstering fears

By the standards of other cities I have been in or visited shortly after a revolution, Damascus seems on the face of it relatively calm. More often than not, I’d expect masked gunmen to be deployed on every corner, patrolling the streets in groups, or whizzing around on battered trucks, with heavy machine guns at

US troops will not be used to secure the peace in Ukraine following any ceasefire deal with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump’s new defence secretary has declared, as he signalled a dramatic shift in American foreign and defence policy away from Europe. Pete Hegseth also said it is “unrealistic” to think Ukraine can return to its

At least one person has died after a Russian missile attack on Kyiv sparked several fires throughout the city, Ukrainian officials said. Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said a nine-year-old child is among three people who were injured as a result of the airstrikes. He added that emergency services were called to at least four districts

The Gaza ceasefire will end if Hamas does not return Israeli hostages by midday on Saturday, Israel’s prime minister has said. It comes after Hamas said it would postpone Saturday’s planned release, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire. Trump latest: ‘We’re going to take Gaza’ under ‘US authority’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned

Donald Trump has said Palestinians would have no right to return to Gaza under his proposal to relocate its population and rebuild the Strip. The president last week debuted his suggestion to “own” Gaza and shut out Hamas while it’s redeveloped, but has now contradicted officials who had said any relocation would be temporary. Asked

Hamas has said it will delay the release of more hostages after accusing Israel of violating their ceasefire deal.  It said Saturday’s handover would not go ahead, presenting the Gaza truce with its first major crisis. A spokesman claimed violations had included “delaying the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip, and targeting

A man has been arrested in Dublin after several people were believed to have been stabbed. Three people have been taken to hospital after the incident. Suspected attacks took place across several streets in the Arbour Hill of the Stoneybatter area in the Irish capital at around 3pm on Sunday. Garda Siochana, the Irish police

Five Thai men held hostage for 15 months in Gaza have arrived back in their home country where they were reunited with their families. Pongsak Thaenna, 36, Sarusak Rumnao, 32, Watchara Sriaoun, 33, Sathian Suwannakham, 35, and Bannawat Saethao, 27, were released by militants on 30 January as part of a ceasefire deal between Israel

From the moment they stepped from the Hamas vehicle, to be seen alive for the first time in 15 and a half months, the three hostages were clearly gaunt and in poor health. Reports in Israel say they have lost up to 30% of their body weight and they are in a bad medical condition.

Donald Trump has doubled down on his plan to take control of Gaza, saying he is committed to buying and owning the war-ravaged land but could allow sections of it to be rebuilt by other states in the Middle East. Speaking onboard Air Force One on his way to attend the Super Bowl in New

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told Donald Trump “let’s do a deal” as he offered the US a partnership over Ukraine’s stores of rare earth and minerals. Earlier this week, Mr Trump said he wanted Ukraine to supply the US with critical resources in exchange for financial support in its war with Russia. In an interview with

Hamas has released the names of three Israeli hostages it says it will release on Saturday in the fifth such swap of a fragile ceasefire in Gaza. The hostages are Eli Sharabi, Ohad ben Ami and Or Levy, Hamas armed wing spokesperson Abu Obeida said in a Telegram post. In return for the captives’ release,

Greece’s authorities have declared a state of emergency on Santorini after a series of earthquakes shook the popular tourist destination. More than 10,000 residents and workers fled the island this week as near-constant tremors and undersea earthquakes have been recorded between Santorini and the islands of Amorgos, Anafi and Ios. A 5.2 magnitude quake struck

The gunman who killed 10 people and wounded several others in Sweden may have been connected with the adult education centre where he opened fire, police have said. Detectives are still trying to establish a motive for Tuesday’s attack in Orebro, the worst mass shooting in the country’s history. Sweden has been left reeling as

“I was in the classroom and someone suddenly came in. I saw him, I saw the shooter. As soon as he entered, he’d started shooting. Six, five times. So I started running.” We’re speaking with a man who survived when Rickard Andersson opened fire, killing 11 people, at an adult education centre in Sweden’s worst

Belgian police have launched a manhunt after a shooting near an underground station in the capital. Nobody was injured in the shooting, which happened outside Clemenceau metro station in Brussels at about 6am local time on Wednesday. Image: Pic: Reuters Image: Pic: Reuters Clemenceau, Trone and Gare de l’Ouest underground stations were closed to the