US President Joe Biden has said he hoped the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas can go on as long as hostages are being released, after the group freed 17 more people, including a four-year-old Israeli-American girl.

Hamas said it wanted to extend the pause in fighting, which has entered its fourth day and final agreed day today, if serious efforts were made to increase the number of Palestinian detainees released by Israel, Reuters reports.

Qatar, Egypt and the United States are pressing for the truce to be extended but it is not clear whether that will happen.

Opinion

Editorial

Back in parliament
Updated 27 Jul, 2024

Back in parliament

It is ECP's responsibility to set right all the wrongs it committed in the Feb 8 general elections.
Brutal crime
27 Jul, 2024

Brutal crime

No effort has been made to even sensitise police to the gravity of crime involving sexual assaults, let alone train them to properly probe such cases.
Upholding rights
27 Jul, 2024

Upholding rights

Sanctity of rights bodies, such as the HRCP, should be inviolable in a civilised environment.
Judicial constraints
Updated 26 Jul, 2024

Judicial constraints

The fact that it is being prescribed by the legislature will be questioned, given the political context.
Macabre spectacle
26 Jul, 2024

Macabre spectacle

Israel knows that regardless of the party that wins the presidency, America’s ‘ironclad’ support for its genocidal endeavours will continue.