Israel at war: What happened on day 44?

A deal to secure the release of some of the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas militants is closer than ever in the Islamist group's war with Israel, a White House official said on Sunday.

White House Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer said an agreement to free "considerably more than 12" hostages would also likely include an extended pause in the fighting and allow for the distribution of humanitarian assistance in Gaza.

Fighting raged on Sunday, with Hamas militants battling Israeli forces trying to push into Gaza's largest refugee camp, the day after Israeli and US officials denied a Washington Post report that a deal had been reached.

"What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, in a very complicated, very sensitive negotiation, have been narrowed," Finer told NBC's Meet the Press program.

"I believe we are closer than we have been in quite some time, maybe closer than we have been since the beginning of this process, to getting this deal done," he added.

Jeremy Corbyn, the former leader of the UK's Labour Party, accused both the IDF and Hamas of being terrorist groups in an article he wrote for Tribute Magazine on Friday.

His article came in response to a vote held in the British Parliament on whether or not to support a ceasefire, where the majority of MPs voted against the ceasefire motion.

Corbyn, who has repeatedly refused to describe Hamas as a terrorist group and once famously referred to Hamas and Hezbollah as friends, compared the Israel-Hamas conflict to the conflict that divided Ireland. 

In the article, Corbyn writes of the suffering that Palestinian civilians in Gaza are experiencing. He attributed the suffering to the ongoing conflict but fails to mention Hamas withholding resources which could alleviate much of the distress experienced.

“With every passing minute, another human being in Gaza is killed. Survivors under siege are running out of the basic means of survival. Doctors are performing surgery without anesthesia. Babies are fighting for survival in incubators running out of electricity,” he wrote.

Israel is hopeful that a significant number of hostages could be released by Hamas "in coming days," Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog said in an interview on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday.

"I'm hopeful we can have a deal in the coming days," Herzog said.

Hamas took about 240 hostages during its deadly cross-border rampage into Israeli communities on October 7, which prompted Israel to lay siege to Gaza and invade the Palestinian territory to eradicate its ruling terrorist group.

Reuters on Novebmer 15 reported that Qatari mediators had been seeking a deal between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 hostages in return for a three-day ceasefire, citing an official briefed on the talks.

At the time, the official said general outlines had been agreed but Israel had still been negotiating details.

"The United States would never give fuel to someone who holds its hostages," National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said Sunday in an interview with 103FM. This comes following his criticism over the weekend of the war cabinet's decision to send diesel fuel to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

"We have to do everything to bring the hostages home," he said.

Ben-Gvir further expressed his dissatisfaction with war cabinet's existence, remarking, "It bothers me that, in the end, there is a thing called a war cabinet." Reflecting on past instances, he recalled being perceived as a "clown" when advocating for targeted countermeasures.

According to Ben-Gvir, regardless of the excuse given, fuel can potentially be used by Hamas for terrorism. He argued for alternative ways to distribute water, emphasizing that nothing should enter Gaza, especially not fuel. Ben-Gvir suggested conveying to the Americans that they should never provide fuel to someone holding their people hostage without knowledge of their situation.

"A gun can save a family, and an assault rifle can save an entire neighborhood. Weapons save lives."

Itamar Ben-Gvir

An Israeli ship named “Galaxy Leader” was hijacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Red Sea on Sunday, according to Arab media.

The cargo ship, owned by the businessman Rami Unger, was carrying vehicles.

The Foreign Ministry said it was aware of the incident. There are 22 crew members on board, none of which are Israeli.

The ship left a port in Turkey headed for India and sailed under the flag of the Bahamas.

The Knesset's National Security Committee will convene on Monday to discuss a law allowing the death penalty for terrorists, submitted by the Otzma Yehudit faction through MK Limor Son Har-Malech.

The committee is chaired by fellow Otzma Yehudit faction member MK Zvika Fogel and is being convened ahead of a first reading vote in the plenary session of the Knesset including the participation of the National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Resistance groups allied to Iran are "cleverly adjusting pressure" on Israel and its supporters, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was quoted as saying by state media on Sunday.

"Resistance groups still have inactivated capacity (for pressure on Israel)," he added.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appealed to Muslim states with political ties with Israel to at least cut them for "a limited time," state media reported on Sunday, weeks after he called for an Islamic oil and food embargo on Israel.

"Some Islamic governments have condemned Israeli crimes in assemblies while some have not. This is unacceptable," Khamenei said before reiterating that the main task of Islamic governments should be to cut off Israel from energy and goods.

"Islamic governments should at least cut off political ties to Israel for a limited time," Khamenei added.

An Israeli ship named “Galaxy Leader” was hijacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Red Sea on Monday, according to Arab media.

This is a developing story.

Ambulance crews of the Palestinian Red Crescent evacuated 31 premature babies from Al-Shifa Hospital on Sunday in coordination with the World Health Organization and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the group said in a post on its Facebook page.

The babies were transferred to the south of Gaza "in preparation for their transfer to the Emirates Hospital in Rafah" the group added.

Later in the day Ashraf Al-Qidra, spokesperson for the Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza, told a news conference that the babies had been moved to Tal Alsultan Hospital in Rafah and will be sent to Egyptian hospitals with their families tomorrow.