Health officials in Gaza say Israeli strikes have killed at least 24 Palestinians, including two babies. Israel says it killed three militant leaders and that some of the strikes were in response to an attack that wounded a soldier. The strikes come as an already fragile ceasefire deal is under increasing strain. Hospital officials report that among the dead are at least five children, seven women and an on-duty paramedic. The violence since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10 has killed more than 550 Palestinians. Eight Arab and Muslim countries have condemned Israel's actions. The ceasefire deal aimed to end a 2-year-old war between Israel and Hamas.

A Gaza Health Ministry official says Israel has turned over the bodies of 15 Palestinians just days after recovering the remains of the last Israeli hostage. The transfer on Thursday marks the last hostage-detainee exchange between Israel and Hamas. The return of all remaining hostages living or dead had been a key part of the first phase in the ceasefire that paused the war in October. A spokesperson at Gaza's health ministry says the bodies handed over Thursday were taken to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. It comes after Israel announced Monday it found and identified the remains of the last Israeli hostage at a cemetery in northern Gaza.

Hospital officials say an Israeli strike in Gaza hit a tent housing displaced people, killing a 5-year-old girl and her uncle. The strike took place in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis, wounding two other children. The Israeli Defense Forces said on social media it targeted a Hamas militant planning an imminent attack. It was unclear if this referred to the tent strike. The Gaza Health Ministry reported over 400 deaths in Gaza since an October ceasefire began. The overall Palestinian death toll from the Israel-Hamas war has risen to at least 71,388, with 171,269 wounded.

Israel has carried out airstrikes on southern and northeastern Lebanon. Thursday's strikes come as the deadline to disarm Hezbollah looms. The attacks happened a day before a meeting of a committee monitoring a U.S.-brokered ceasefire. The ceasefire ended the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah a year ago. The Israeli military said that it targeted Hezbollah infrastructure and military sites. Lebanon's National News Agency reported that the strikes stretched from Mount Rihan to the northeastern Hermel region. The U.S. has increased pressure on Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah in recent weeks.

Israel's intense bombardment of the Gaza Strip this week marked the most serious challenge yet for a fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Gaza health officials said over 100 Palestinians were killed, including dozens of civilians. Israel said one of its soldiers was killed in an attack that helped prompt the fierce Israeli strikes. But by early Wednesday, the ceasefire had been restored almost as quickly as it had unraveled. Hamas handed over the remains of two dead hostages on Thursday, in another positive sign for the truce. The chain of events underscored the fragility of the truce between Israel and Hamas after two years of war, but also showed how intent the U.S. is on keeping it going.

Israelis are mourning the dead and fearing for the remaining hostages as they mark two years since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack plunged the region into a devastating war. Tuesday's commemorations come as Israel and Hamas hold indirect negotiations in Egypt. The main memorial ceremony is being organized by bereaved families. The government-organized memorial will be held according to the Jewish calendar next week. The rift reflects deep divisions over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's leadership, which many blame for the failure to secure a ceasefire that would free the hostages. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed tens of thousands and razed entire towns and cities in the Gaza Strip.

Yemen's Houthi rebels say that Israeli strikes on Yemen's capital the previous afternoon killed at least nine people and injured scores in Sanaa. Thursday's strikes came a day after a drone launched by the Houthis wounded 22 people in the southern Israeli city of Eilat, a rare breach of Israel's air defenses. According to the health ministry in the Houthi-controlled northern half of Yemen, which includes Sanaa, four children, two women and three older people were among the dead. The Israeli military said it carried out strikes in Yemen, with dozens of aircraft targeting Houthi military command headquarters, military camps and security and intelligence facilities.