US President Donald Trump's escalating trade tariffs will hit world growth and raise inflation, the OECD has predicted in its latest forecast. Canada and Mexico are forecast to see the biggest impact as they have had the harshest tariffs imposed on them, but US growth is also expected to be hit. The OECD has more than halved its growth outlook for Canada for this year and next, while it expects Mexico to be pushed into a recession. Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports. The US has also imposed 25% tariffs on other imports from Mexico and Canada - with some exemptions - and a 20% levy on Chinese goods. In response, Canada and the EU have both announced retaliatory tariffs. The Paris-based OECD said the higher trade barriers and "increased geopolitical and policy uncertainty" were hitting investment and household spending. In the OECD's latest forecast: The OECD said the developing trade war was set to push up inflation, which will mean interest rates are likely to remain higher for longer. "Significant risks remain," it warned. "Further fragmentation of the global economy is a key concern. "Higher and broader increases in trade barriers would hit growth around the world and add to inflation". The OECD said that for the world economy, growth would slow from 3.2% in 2024 to 3.1% in 2025, largely as a result of the trade tensions. It also said it expected inflation - the rate of price increases - to continue to slow, though not as much as previously anticipated. The organisation is predicting inflation of 3.8% this year across 20 of the world's largest economies, compared with the 3.5% it had previously forecast. Last week, Elon Musk's electric car firm Tesla warned that it, and other US exporters, could be harmed by the trade battle. In a letter to the US trade representative, the firm said US exporters were "exposed to disproportionate impacts" if other countries retaliated to Trump's tariffs. The OECD cut its growth forecast for the UK's economy to 1.4% in 2025, from its previous forecast of 1.7%, and to 1.2% in 2026, down from 1.3%. However, the forecast is more optimistic than the Bank of England, which earlier this month cut its UK growth forecast for 2025 to 0.75%.

Trump has imposed tariffs on Canada's metals, commented on turning it into the 51st state and sparked a call from infuriated Canadians to boycott U.S. products. New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney met with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday during his first official overseas trip, seeking support from one of Ottawa’s oldest allies as U.S. President Donald Trump attacks Canada’s sovereignty and economy. Macron and Carney did not take journalists’ questions ahead of the talks, a sign the French president might not want to upset Trump. Macron did not address Trump’s attacks on Canada but noted that tariffs only bring inflation. “In the current international context, we want to be able to develop our most strategic projects with our closest, more loyal partners,” Macron said, adding that “we are stronger together, better able to ensure the respect of our interests, the full exercise of our sovereignty.” Carney was sworn in on Friday. He will next visit Britain, where he will meet with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and King Charles III, the head of state in Canada. Starmer is also not expected to hold a joint news conference. Carney will also travel to the edge of Canada’s Arctic to reaffirm the country’s security and sovereignty. Carney has chosen the two European capital cities that shaped Canada’s early existence. During his swearing-in, he noted the country was built on the bedrock of three peoples, French, English and Indigenous. He said Canada is fundamentally different from America and will “never, ever, in any way shape or form, be part of the United States.” “I want to ensure that France, and the whole of Europe, works enthusiastically with Canada, the most European of non-European countries, and at the same time resolutely North American, determined, like you, to maintain the most positive relations possible with the United States,” Carney said Monday. Since Trump came to office, he has imposed whopping tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum and repeatedly commented on turning Canada into the 51st state, infuriating Canadians and sparking a call to boycott U.S. products across the country. Trump also threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on all of America’s trading partners on April 2. Macron said fair trade “is certainly more effective than tariffs, which create inflation and damage supply chains and our economic integration.” Carney’s choice of itinerary emphasizes Canada’s strong connection with the two former colonial powers, said Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal. “The fact that Canada never broke away from the U.K. in a violent fashion is a key historical and institutional difference between the United States and Canada, a constitutional monarchy rather than a republic that has adopted and retained a U.K.-style parliamentary system,” Béland said. The trip to London will be a kind of homecoming. Carney became the first non-British governor in the Bank of England’s 319-year history when he took the job on July 1, 2013. He served until March 15, 2020. Carney, who turned 60 on Sunday, has said he’s ready to meet with Trump if he shows respect for Canadian sovereignty. He said he doesn’t plan to visit Washington at the moment but hopes to have a phone call with the president soon. His government is also reviewing the purchase of U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets in light of Trump’s trade war. Meanwhile, Macron has been increasing efforts to persuade France’s allies to move away from purchases of American military hardware, which also coincides with mounting concerns in Europe that European defenses are overly dependent on U.S. weaponry, technical support and goodwill. Macron touched on the French-British plan for securing any ceasefire in Ukraine. “This common commitment at the side of the Ukrainians has always aimed for a peace that is solid and lasting,” Macron said. “Canada and France are powers of peace, reliable allies, which will take part together in this effort.” He did not give details. Carney spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by phone late Sunday and invited him to the G7 summit this summer that Canada is hosting. Trump said he would speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday as he pushes to end the war in Ukraine. Carney is expected to call a parliamentary election by the end of the week, to take place in late April or early May. Canada’s governing Liberal Party had appeared poised for a historic election defeat this year until Trump declared economic war. Now, the party and its new leader could come out on top.

The Israeli military said it struck a group of people who were part of a drone operation, but Hamas alleged the IDF released inaccurate identifications. Israeli military strikes killed at least 14 people in 24 hours, the Gaza Health Ministry said, as international negotiators engage in talks to reinforce the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. The ministry reported the deaths in a statement Sunday, saying 51 other people were taken to the hospital with injuries. The bodies of 15 other people who had previously died were recovered, the ministry added. The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement Saturday that it had identified two Hamas operatives “operating a drone that posed a threat to IDF troops” and saw others collecting drone-operating equipment. Israel’s military released the names of six people purportedly belonging to the group it was targeting. Hamas’ Government Media Office in Gaza denied the allegations in a statement, saying the names Israel released were inaccurate. It said that one of the people the IDF identified is alive and that others had no part in the team allegedly targeted by Israel. The IDF did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the alleged inaccuracies Hamas identified. Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in January, but the temporary pause in hostilities has been undermined by mutual accusations of violations. Hamas has delayed the releases of hostages at different times, while Israeli strikes have continued sporadically in Gaza. On Friday, Hamas agreed to release Edan Alexander, the last living U.S. citizen held hostage in Gaza. Four children were killed in an Israeli drone strike that day. The first phase of the ceasefire expired this month, and the second phase is designed for the release of male hostages. That stage of the agreement is intended to initiate talks for a long-term end to the war. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he sent negotiators to Egypt to meet with “senior Egyptian officials to discuss the issue of the hostages.” Hamas previously said it was ready for the next round of talks. Netanyahu met Saturday with the negotiating team and ministers to discuss a proposal from Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, under which the 11 living hostages in Gaza would be released and half of the hostages who were killed would be recovered.

He also warned Iran to stop supporting the rebel group, promising to hold the country “fully accountable” for the actions of its proxy. WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump said he ordered a series of airstrikes on the Houthi-held areas in Yemen on Saturday, promising to use “overwhelming lethal force” until Iranian-backed Houthi rebels cease their attacks on shipping along a vital maritime corridor. The Houthis said at least 18 civilians were killed. “Our brave Warfighters are right now carrying out aerial attacks on the terrorists’ bases, leaders, and missile defenses to protect American shipping, air, and naval assets, and to restore Navigational Freedom,” Trump said in a social media post. “No terrorist force will stop American commercial and naval vessels from freely sailing the Waterways of the World.” He also warned Iran to stop supporting the rebel group, promising to hold the country “fully accountable” for the actions of its proxy. It comes two weeks after the U.S. leader sent a letter to Iranian leaders offering a path to restarting bilateral talks between the countries on Iran’s advancing nuclear weapons program. Trump has said he will not allow it to become operational. The Houthis reported explosions in their territory Saturday evening, in the capital of Sanaa and the northern province of Saada, the rebels’ stronghold on the border with Saudi Arabia, with more airstrikes reported in those areas early Sunday. Images online showed plumes of black smoke over the area of the Sanaa airport complex, which includes a sprawling military facility. The Houthis also reported airstrikes early Sunday on the provinces of Hodeida, Bayda, and Marib. At least 18 people were killed, including 13 in Sanaa and five in Saada, according to the Houthi-run health ministry. At least 24 others were wounded, including nine in Sanaa and 15 in Saada, it said. Nasruddin Amer, deputy head of the Houthi media office, said the airstrikes won’t deter them and they would retaliate against the U.S. “Sanaa will remain Gaza’s shield and support and will not abandon it no matter the challenges,” he added on social media. Another spokesman, Mohamed Abdulsalam, on X, called Trump’s claims that the Houthis threaten international shipping routes “false and misleading.” The airstrikes come a few days after the Houthis said they would resume attacks on Israeli vessels sailing off Yemen in response to Israel’s latest blockade on Gaza. They described the warning as affecting the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Arabian Sea. There have been no Houthi attacks reported since then. Earlier this month, Israel halted all aid coming into Gaza and warned of “additional consequences” for Hamas if their fragile ceasefire in the war isn’t extended as negotiations continue over starting a second phase. The Houthis had targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels and killing four sailors, during their campaign targeting military and civilian ships between the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in late 2023 and January of this year, when this ceasefire in Gaza took effect. The attacks raised the Houthis’ profile as they faced economic and other problems at home amid Yemen’s decade-long stalemated war that’s torn apart the Arab world’s poorest nation. The Houthi media office said the U.S. strikes hit a residential neighborhood in Sanaa’s northern district of Shouab. Residents said at least four airstrikes rocked the Eastern Geraf neighborhood there, terrifying women and children. “The explosions were very strong,” said Abdallah al-Alffi. “It was like an earthquake.” The Eastern Geraf is home to Houthi-held military facilities and a headquarters for the rebels’ political bureau, located in a densely populated area. The Houthis reported fresh strikes on the southwestern Dhamar province late Saturday. They said the strikes hit the outskirts of the provincial capital, also named Dhamar, and the district of Abs. The United States, Israel and Britain have previously hit Houthi-held areas in Yemen. Israel’s military declined to comment. Saturday’s operation was the first strike on the Yemen-based Houthis under the second Trump administration. Such broad-based missile strikes against the Houthis were carried out multiple times by the Biden administration in response to frequent attacks by the Houthis against commercial and military vessels in the region. The USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group, which includes the carrier, three Navy destroyers and one cruiser, are in the Red Sea and were part of Saturday’s mission. The USS Georgia cruise missile submarine has also been operating in the region. Trump announced the strikes as he spent the day at his Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. “These relentless assaults have cost the U.S. and World Economy many BILLIONS of Dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk,” Trump said.

Waltz was asked whether the White House would consider direct military action on Iran.WASHINGTON — National security adviser Mike Waltz said Sunday that “all options are always on the table” when asked whether direct military action against Iran would be possible. His comments come after the U.S. launched airstrikes Saturday on parts of Yemen that are controlled by Houthis, an Iran-backed group that has attacked shipping vessels in response to the war in Gaza. President Donald Trump announced the strikes on Saturday, saying in a post to Truth Social that Houthi attacks “on American vessels will not be tolerated.” “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective,” Trump added. Trump also warned Iran in the same post that its support for Houthis “must end immediately.” He told the nation to “beware” of threatening Americans and that “America will hold you fully accountable and, we won’t be nice about it!” The airstrikes on Yemen come as the Trump administration is also trying to end the war in Ukraine by meeting with Russian and Ukrainian officials to determine a path to a possible ceasefire. Waltz said diplomacy is ongoing, but indicated that it was unrealistic to expect Ukraine would regain all of its territory taken over by Russia. “We have to ask ourselves, is it in our national interest, is it realistic?” Waltz said when asked about territory that may be given to Russia despite Russia having launched the war by invading Ukraine. “Are we going to drive every Russian off of every inch of Ukrainian soil, including Crimea?” he asked, arguing that the Biden administration’s strategy was “essentially endless warfare in an environment that we’re literally losing hundreds of thousands of people in a matter of months, and could escalate into World War III.” “We can talk about what’s right and wrong, and we also have to talk about the reality of the situation on the ground,” Waltz said. Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” that his recent meeting with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin “was positive.” Witkoff has been active in ongoing talks about the future of Russia and Ukraine. Witkoff said in the same interview that he expects Trump and Putin to have a call sometime this week. During his presidential campaign, Trump said he could end the war in Ukraine in one day or even before being sworn in. During a “Full Measure” interview taped last week with journalist Sharyl Attkisson, Trump said he “was being a little bit sarcastic when I said that.”

A mother grieves as her sons, whom she had struggled to keep alive in the war, were killed during a truce, in which Israeli airstrikes continue. For a year and a half, Umm Mahmoud Alerfan did everything she could to try to keep her children alive. As Israel pummeled Gaza with bombs, she kept them close, inside their shelter, terrified that a missile or sudden airstrike would steal them away. On Friday, two months since the fragile ceasefire in Gaza was declared, Alerfan, back in Gaza City with her family, was preparing the meal to break the day’s Ramadan fast. Two of her sons, Mahmoud Alerfan, 15, and Yusuf Alerfan, 13, stepped outside — just for a moment, just to find firewood for their evening meal. But an Israeli drone found them first, firing the missile that killed the boys and tearing Alerfan’s life apart. “Two, both of them in one day,” she screamed, stained with her sons’ blood as she wept into their lifeless bodies. Two of their friends, Malik Althatha, 13, and Salim Hasnin, 15, who had joined them to gather firewood, were also killed. NBC News’ crew on the ground captured the moment as Alerfan clutched their bodies, refusing to let go as her wails echoed through the broken streets. One man holds her back, and guides her away from the bloody scene, her sobs breaking into gasps. “I did not allow them outside, but today I did. Why did they come out today?” she asked. Standing beside one of the bodies, Awda al-Amarin struggled to understand why Israel had killed the children. “Is this a truce?” he said. “Is this peace and safety? Where is the ceasefire?” When asked for comment on the children’s deaths, the Israel Defense Forces told NBC News that it had targeted “terrorists” in central Gaza who it said, without providing evidence, were attempting to plant “explosive devices on the ground.” The first phase of the ceasefire expired earlier this month, and talks continue in Doha. On the ground, the ceasefire remains marred by violence as Israeli airstrikes continue. At least nine people were killed, including two journalists, by an Israeli airstrike on Beit Lahia in northern Gaza on Saturday, Reuters reported, citing Gaza’s health ministry. Last week, an Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, just a day after an Israeli drone strike killed two people in northern Gaza. More than 48,500 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its sweeping military offensive, according to local health officials, and around 70% of the infrastructure has been destroyed, according to the United Nations. Israel launched the offensive after 250 people were taken hostage during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in which 1,200 people were killed, according to Israeli officials. A report published on Thursday by United Nations-backed human rights experts accused Israel of a range of violations against women, men, girls and boys, including perpetrating “genocidal acts,” and the “systematic destruction” of reproductive health care in Gaza. It said Israel had carried out “sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence against Palestinians,” including photographing and filming “hundreds” of Palestinian men and boys in “humiliating and degrading circumstances while subjected to acts of a sexual nature.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out at the Human Rights Council, a U.N.-backed body that commissioned the team of independent experts, calling it an “antisemitic, rotten, terrorist-supporting, and irrelevant body.” Israel has denied repeated accusations of genocide. The ceasefire deal, which began Jan. 19, called for hostages to be freed in exchange for a truce. With no agreement on the next phase, Israel has pressed for an extension of the first phase and demanded that Hamas release half the remaining hostages before discussing a lasting ceasefire. Hamas has said it wants to begin negotiations on the second phase of the deal, which would see the hostages who remain in its captivity released, along with the withdrawal of Israeli forces and ultimately an end to the war. The militant group said last week that it had agreed to release Edan Alexander, the last living U.S. citizen held hostage in Gaza, as well as the bodies of four dual nationals. Nothing has been finalized, Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman told NBC News. But he said that the militant group had agreed to a proposal put forward by mediators and was awaiting the results of further negotiations.

As leaders around the world try to figure out how best to deal with the new Trump administration, one Canadian official has come out swinging. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, a regular on major US networks where he has addressed Americans directly, was among the first in Canada to pull US alcohol off the shelves as a trade war between the two neighbours ramped up. Ford has also ripped up a multi-million dollar contract with Elon Musk's Starlink, and has been unafraid to use energy exports to the US as a bargaining chip - all in a bid to get Trump to withdraw his tariff threats against Canada. The right-wing, plain-spoken politician admitted he was initially delighted Donald Trump won re-election and viewed him as an ally. But then, Ford said, using an expletive, the US president pulled a knife and "yanked it into us". This week, it appeared that Ford's unusual tactics had grabbed Trump's attention. Speaking to reporters on the White House lawn on Tuesday, the US president described Ford as a "very strong man" as he addressed Ontario's threat to slap a 25% surcharge on US-bound electricity. Ford has since shelved that plan pending further discussions with the Trump administration. But his threat to hike the price of electricity on Americans seems to have earned him a grudging nod of respect from Trump, who later backed off from doubling tariffs on aluminium and steel to 50%. It also helped Ford score a meeting with US officials in Washington to discuss the future of the Canada-US trade relationship. Ford sat on Thursday with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The meeting was also attended by Canada's Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc. The meeting was "very, very productive" though "bumps in the road" remain, he said afterwards. It is unclear whether Ford's defiant stance will earn Canada more favours from Trump. It is also an approach that is not unanimously agreed on, with Premier Danielle Smith of the oil-rich Alberta vehemently refusing to withhold any of her province's energy exports to the US. Trump's recent willingness to turn down the heat, however, signals that Ford may be succeeding in grabbing the attention of the US, said Shakir Chambers, a Canadian Conservative strategist at the Toronto-based Oyster Group. "That's how you deal with Trump, through a position of strength," Mr Chambers told the BBC. "Ford understands the language of Trump's people and inner circle." It at least earned him a rare compliment from the US president, who for several months has berated Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau repeatedly by calling him "governor," while expressing his desire to absorb Canada and make it "the 51st state". Also rare is seeing the Oval Office pay attention to the premier of a Canadian province, whose day-to-day is ordinarily preoccupied with domestic matters such as infrastructure projects, healthcare funding and co-operating with the federal government. But these are no ordinary times in Canada. The country is in the middle of a transfer of power, from outgoing Trudeau to Prime Minister-designate Mark Carney. It is also facing what has been referred to as an "existential threat" from its neighbour and long-time ally to the south. Announcing his intention to pause energy tariffs pending trade talks, Ford vowed to Canadians that he will not "roll over" and warned that using Ontario's energy supply as a bargaining chip remains on the table. But he said he will not ignore the chance to resolve this dispute with Americans. His emergence as the face of Canada's fight is, in many ways, understandable. As Ontario premier, he is at the helm of a province that is home to 16 million people and Canada's large auto manufacturing sector, which is deeply intertwined with that of the US, leaving it vulnerable to any broad tariff threats. He is also chair of the Council of the Federation, a multilateral congress that includes all of Canada's provincial and territorial premiers. On Wednesday, Ford kept busy ahead of his meeting with the Americans. He sat down for breakfast with incoming Prime Minister Carney, where the two discussed the need to "stand firm and strong" to Trump. Americans will undoubtedly see more of Ford in the coming weeks and months. The premier just decisively secured four more years in office after campaigning on standing up against the US president. For Ontarians, Ford is a well-known figure. He has led the province since 2018 and is only the second premier in its history to secure three consecutive majority government wins. He is the product of a Toronto political dynasty known as "Ford Nation". For many years, he was overshadowed by his younger brother, the late Rob Ford, who was the mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014 before he was ousted after a crack cocaine scandal. Locally, the Fords are infamous for their "authentic" and approachable style of politics, said Mr Chambers, who was coached high school football by the younger Ford. Premier Ford is known for handing out his personal cell phone number to constituents, encouraging them to contact him directly. During a news conference on US tariffs last week, he urged people to be patient as he worked to respond to more than 4,000 text messages he has received lately. Despite his popularity, the premier is also embroiled in several controversies. Chief among them is an ongoing police investigation into a now-scrapped deal his government made that would have allowed the development of environmentally-protected land. On the national stage, he has run up against Alberta Premier Smith, who has called for a more measured and cautious response to Trump and his tariffs. That caution has also been practised by other leaders, namely France's Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, both of whom struck a more diplomatic tone in their February visits to the White House. But Ford's defiant stance against Trump is widely supported in Canada. Polls show the majority of Canadians support retaliating against the US, and a swell of nationalism has since emerged across the country. While Ford has been forceful, he has also been careful in his direct appeals to Americans. "Believe me when I say I don't want to do this," he said earlier this week when he announced his plan to hike electricity prices, before underscoring that his priority is to protect Ontario jobs.

Every year, about one billion tires around the world reach the end of their life according to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Many of them end up piled in landfills posing potential health and environmental risks. In Africa, one Rwandan entrepreneur has found a way to upcycle the rubber to create fashionable footwear. While studying creative design at the University of Rwanda, Kevine Kagirimpundu felt she had limited employment options, so she took matters into her own hands. She began researching how to make her own products and stumbled upon the idea of using old tires for shoe soles. In 2013, she and her friend Ysolde Shimwe officially launched Uzuri K&Y, a name incorporating the founders’ initials and a Swahili word meaning beauty and goodness. The eco-friendly shoe brand offers a range of handcrafted sandals for men, women and children. “We wanted to be different but also be part of the problem-solving process because Rwanda at the time was banning plastic bags, which was such a huge inspiration for us. So, we thought how do we play a part in that and how do we contribute?” Kagirimpundu said. “We thought this creates something that would become a source of income for ourselves but also for other young people like us.” In 2008, the government banned the manufacturing, importation and use of plastic polyethylene bags, and took a step further in 2019 by prohibiting single-use plastics, like straws, bottles, and containers. As CEO and managing director, Kagirimpundu says the brand’s mission aligns with Rwanda’s efforts to cut back on waste. The company buys tires from local landfills and makes the sandals in its Kigali production facility. When running at full capacity, Kagirimpundu says it can produce more than 4,500 pairs of sandals a month, which it sells online and in several stores across Rwanda and Nairobi, Kenya. A report from the Rwanda Environment Management Authority found the country discarded more than 5,000 tons of tires in 2022. Kagirimpundu said to date Uzuri K&Y has removed 10 metric tons of rubber from landfills in Rwanda. Still, the CEO believes the company’s human impact is just as important as the environmental aspect: “We had to create a business that actually became a source of employment for women,” she said. Empowering women Reflecting on the company’s humble beginnings, Kagirimpundu said one of the biggest challenges was a lack of skilled labor. “Nobody knew how to make shoes,” she said, so she decided to set up a training program to teach locals the skills they need to become artisans and entrepreneurs. Kagirimpundu says 1,500 young people have gone through the program, about 70% of them women. She added that it’s “priceless” to give a woman a steady income when Rwanda has an unemployment rate of 13%, 14.5% for women. “It’s the whole collective of women working together to create something big, something important,” she said.

The allegations came in one of the most extensive reports of its kind on the issue since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel ignited the war. Israel has refuted them. United Nations-backed human rights experts on Thursday accused Israel of “the systematic use of sexual, reproductive and other gender-based violence” in its war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The allegations came in one of the most extensive reports of its kind on the issue since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel ignited the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out at the Human Rights Council, a U.N.-backed body that commissioned the team of independent experts, as an “anti-Israel circus” that “has long been exposed as an antisemitic, rotten, terrorist-supporting, and irrelevant body.” His statement did not address the findings themselves. The findings by the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which seeks to document in minute detail the allegations and evidence of crimes to bolster accountability for perpetrators, could be used by prosecutors at the International Criminal Court or in other jurisdictions to try to bring justice to victims and their relatives. In its report released Thursday, the commission examined the widespread destruction of Gaza, the use of heavy explosives in civilian areas and Israeli attacks on hospitals and health facilities. It said all three led to “disproportionate violence against women and children.” The commission documented a range of violations perpetrated against Palestinian women, men, girls and boys and accused Israeli security forces of rape and sexual violence against Palestinian detainees. Israel denies any systematic abuse of prisoners and says it takes action when there are violations. “Our report finds that Israel has increasingly employed sexual, reproductive, and other forms of gender-based violence against Palestinians as part of a broader effort to undermine their right to self-determination,” Chris Sidoti, a member of the commission, told reporters in Geneva. Israel’s mission in Geneva rejected the allegations and accused the commission of relying on “second-hand, single, uncorroborated sources.” Since the commission was set up in 2021 — long before the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel — Israel has refused to cooperate with it, accusing the investigative team and the council of bias. Commission member Sidoti said the report “also concludes that Israel has carried out genocidal acts through the systematic destruction of sexual and reproductive health care facilities.” The commission stopped short of accusing Israel of genocide, as some advocacy groups and other rights experts have. Israel, which was established in the wake of the Nazi Holocaust and is home to many survivors and their families, has vigorously denied such allegations. Israel says it took extraordinary measures to avoid harming civilians in the 15-month war, which has been paused by a fragile ceasefire. It blames civilian deaths and destruction on Hamas because the militants operate in residential areas. Israeli forces carried out a number of raids on hospitals, accusing Hamas of using them for military purposes, allegations denied by Palestinian health officials. Pointing to the report, a Hamas statement urged international courts to prosecute Israel’s leaders. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense minister, accusing them of war crimes, which they deny. The court also issued a warrant in November for Hamas’ military leader, but the militants have since confirmed that he was killed. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages. Israeli authorities, citing eyewitness accounts and other evidence, have accused Hamas-led militants of widespread rape and sexual violence. Israeli experts who have treated former hostages say some were subjected to physical and sexual abuse in captivity. A U.N. envoy last year reported “reasonable grounds” to believe such allegations. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the commission held public hearings with victims, lawyers, advocacy groups and others whose accounts were included in the report. The commission was not considering allegations of sexual, gender-based and other violence committed against Israelis during the Oct. 7 attack or against hostages in Gaza, but reported on the issue last year.

The Trump administration has been engaged in direct talks with Hamas over the release of U.S. citizens still held in the Gaza Strip, the White House said this month. Hamas said Friday that it had agreed to release Edan Alexander, the last living U.S. citizen held hostage in Gaza, as well as the bodies of four dual-nationals. Nothing has been finalized, Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman told NBC News. But he said that the militant group had agreed to a proposal put forward by mediators and was awaiting the results of further negotiations. The decision to free Alexander, an American Israeli, was first announced in a statement posted to Telegram on Friday. It said that Hamas was ready to begin negotiations to start the second phase of its ceasefire deal with Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that Hamas was engaging in “manipulation and psychological warfare.” It added that Netanyahu would convene his ministerial team on Saturday “to receive a detailed report from the negotiating team, and to decide on the next steps for the release of the hostages.” Talks around maintaining the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continued in Doha, Qatar. The first phase ended without an agreement on starting the second phase of the deal, which has brought a pause to the war in Gaza. The State Department and National Security Council did not immediately respond to requests for comment from NBC News. A spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment. The Trump administration has been engaged in direct talks with Hamas over the release of U.S. hostages still held in the Gaza Strip, the White House said this month. Hamas said that its leadership had received a proposal on Thursday from mediators to resume negotiations and that it had “responded responsibly and positively” Friday morning, including its agreement to release Alexander and the bodies of four other dual nationals. Hamas is believed to be still holding the bodies of four Israeli-Americans: Itay Chen, 19; Omer Neutra, 21; Judith Weinstein, 70; and her husband, Gadi Haggai, 72. Edan Alexander, who grew up in New Jersey and had volunteered to serve in Israel’s military, is the last living hostage with U.S. citizenship. He was stationed outside Gaza when he was among around 250 people taken hostage during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials. Since then, more than 48,500 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip after Israel launched a sweeping military offensive in the Palestinian enclave, according to local health officials, while around 70% of the infrastructure in the territory has also been destroyed, according to the United Nations. The current ceasefire deal, which took effect Jan. 19, calls for the remaining 59 hostages in Hamas captivity to be released during the second phase, during which plans for an end to the war would be negotiated. With the ceasefire's first phase having come to an end without the agreement of a second phase, Israel has pressed Hamas to instead accept an extension to the first phase, demanding the release of half of the remaining hostages in return for a guarantee of negotiating a lasting truce. Hamas has said it wants to begin negotiations on the second phase of the deal, which would see the hostages who remain in its captivity released, along with the withdrawal of Israeli forces and ultimately, an end to the war.