On Thursday, the law, which was passed in October, bans UNRWA from operating on Israeli land, including in occupied East Jerusalem, and contact with Israeli authorities is forbidd

Steven Witkoff, who played an important role in brokering the truce between Israel and Hamas, also met with Israel’s prime minister and visited Saudi Arabia.

• Eight hostages – three Israeli and five Thai – are set to be released from Gaza on Thursday. The three Israelis are Arbel Yehoud, Agam Berger and Gadi Moses, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office. The names of the five Thai citizens have not been made public.

We very much hope this decision will be withdrawn,' UNRWA spokesperson Jonathan Fowler says on Israel's looming ban on the agency, set to take effect Thursday - Anadolu Ajansı

Palestinian militants on Thursday freed three Israeli hostages and five foreigners captured in the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel as the third hostage-prisoner exchange of the Gaza ceasefire got under way.

In a significant development during the Gaza ceasefire, Hamas has released Israeli soldier Agam Berger in the third prisoner exchange. The carefully orchestrated swap, which includes the planned release of three more Israelis and five Thai captives,

The director of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon said on Wednesday that the agency had not been affected by U.S. President Donald Trump's halt to U.S. foreign aid funding or by an Israeli ban on its operations.

Implementation of a ban on the U.N. Palestinian relief agency UNRWA in Israel - due to start on Thursday - will be disastrous, the UNRWA chief told the Security Council on Tuesday, as the United States accused it of being "irresponsible and dangerous.

The ban effectively cuts off the UN aid agency from delivering critical aid to Gaza, putting millions of Palestinians at risk after 15 months of war have devastated the region.

Follow NBC News live updates for the latest coverage of the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas.

Israel on Thursday formally banned the main United Nations aid agency for Palestinian refugees from operating on its territory despite heavy diplomatic