Breaking: Middle East crisis live: Trump says Gaza ceasefire should be cancelled if hostage release delayed….See More

US president said it was ultimately up to Israel but he warned that ‘all hell is going to break out’ if the remaining hostages aren’t released on Saturday

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan first to be hit with US sanctions
International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan is the first person to be hit with economic and travel sanctions authorised by US President Donald Trump, according to a report by Reuters.

Khan, who is British, was named on Monday in an annex to an executive order signed by Trump last week.

Trump signed an executive order last week that authorises aggressive economic sanctions against the ICC, accusing the body of “illegitimate and baseless actions” targeting the US and Israel.

The hostile action against the ICC comes in response to the court’s decision in November to issue arrest warrants for Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his former defense minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel’s defence minister says Hamas announcement a ‘complete violation’ of ceasefire deal
Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said the Hamas announcement was a “complete violation” of the ceasefire agreement, signalling that fighting could resume, Agence France-Press reports.

“I have instructed the IDF (military) to prepare at the highest level of alert for any possible scenario in Gaza,” Katz said in a statement.

The military later said that it had raised “the level of readiness” around Gaza, and “decided to significantly reinforce the area”.

Negotiators were due to meet in the coming days in Qatar to discuss the implementation of the truce’s first phase, as well as potentially the next phases which have yet to be finalised, Agence France-Presse reports.

Talks on a second phase were meant to begin on the truce’s 16th day, but Israel had refused to send its negotiators to Doha for that.

The Hostage and Missing Families Forum campaign group said on Monday it had “requested assistance from the mediating countries to help restore and implement the existing deal effectively”.