Day 52 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Monday, Nov. 27

A senior official from Qatar, which was instrumental in brokering the original truce, announced the extension just hours before the original agreement was set to expire.

Rina Bassist, Ezgi Akin, Beatrice Farhat, Elizabeth Hagedorn, Adam Lucente, Jack Dutton, Jared Szuba and Al-Monitor’s contributors on the ground in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel contributed to this blog.

Click here for our most recent updates.

Live updates (all times EDT):

Monday, Nov. 27, 2023

4:45 pm: Blinken to visit Israel, West Bank

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel this week to Israel and the West Bank to discuss humanitarian assistance to Gaza, the release of all hostages and protections for Palestinian civilians, a senior State Department official said.

From there, Blinken will travel to Dubai to attend the United Nations' annual climate conference, COP28. The top US diplomat is currently in Brussels for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.

4:00 pm: 11 Israeli hostages freed from Gaza, arrive in Israel

Eleven hostages including nine children and two women held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip are now in Israeli territory, the Israeli military said in a statement, adding, “After they undergo an initial medical assessment of their health, our forces will accompany them until they are reunited with their families.”

The freed children are aged 3 to 18 years old. Five fathers of the children freed Monday evening are still being held captive. Israel and Hamas have agreed to prolong the temporary truce by two more days.

2:15 pm: Who are the three Palestinian students shot in Vermont?

A man pleaded not guilty on Monday after being charged with shooting three Palestinian university students in Burlington, Vermont over the weekend. The students, two of whom are US citizens, were visiting family in the city and have been hospitalized. Hatred toward Arabs, Muslims and Jews is rising in the United States amid the Israel-Hamas war and authorities are investigating whether the incident constituted a hate crime, Adam Lucente reports.

2:10 pm: Fourth hostage release begins

The fourth release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip is “underway,” said the spokesperson of the Israeli military, Daniel Hagari. He did not specify what stage the hostage transfer has reached.

11:30 am: How risky is US-Houthi escalation after Navy thwarts tanker hijacking?

Two ballistic missiles launched from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen landed roughly 10 nautical miles from a US Navy destroyer after it thwarted the attempted hijacking of an Israeli-linked commercial tanker ship in the Gulf of Aden, the US military said on Sunday. Jared Szuba explains the significance of this escalation.

11:28 am: Qatar announces two-day extension in truce

With the four-day pause in fighting set to expire early Tuesday, Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced that an agreement had been reached to extend the deal by two days. Qatar, alongside Egypt and the United States, has been brokering negotiations between Hamas and Israel.

“The State of Qatar announces, as part of the ongoing mediation, an agreement has been reached to extend the humanitarian truce for an additional two days in the Gaza Strip,” Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari wrote in a post on X.

10:00 am: As Israel’s economy slows, investors ask how long Hamas war will go on

In the month since Hamas attacked civilians in southern Israel and the Israeli government invaded the Gaza Strip in response, foreign investors have faced complicated decisions about how to manage their exposure to the Jewish state. Harry Clynch reports.

6:26 am: NATO chief calls for extension of temporary truce

"I welcome that the agreement between Hamas and Israel has led to the release of hostages and the delivery of more humanitarian aid. I call for an extension of the pause. This would allow for much-needed relief to the people of Gaza and the release of more hostages," said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. Speaking to reporters ahead of the meetings of NATO ministers of foreign affairs in Brussels, Stoltenberg also noted that Iran should rein in its proxies in the region.

5:31 pm: Elon Musk meets with Netanyahu in Israel

Owner of X social media platform Elon Musk arrived in Israel Monday and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The two visited Kibbutz Kfar Aza, one of the main theaters of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, read a statement issued by the Israeli premier’s office. Musk’s visit will include a filmed conversation with Netanyahu, a meeting with war cabinet minister Benny Gantz and a meeting with President Isaac Herzog. The office of the president said representatives of families of hostages held by Hamas will join the meeting and that the president will ask Musk to take action against antisemitism on X.

2:56 am: Israel, Hamas raise concerns over names of those to be released

Israel and Hamas have both expressed concerns over the names of the fourth batch of hostages and prisoners to be released on Monday, an official briefed on the matter told Reuters. “There is a slight issue with today’s lists. The Qataris are working with both sides to resolve it and avoid delays,” the official said, without adding more details. Since a four-day truce began in Gaza on Friday, Hamas has freed 58 people it had taken hostage during its cross border attack Oct. 7, while Israel released 117 Palestinian prisoners held in its jails. The swap deal comes under a Qatari-mediated agreement reached last week.

1:30 am: Israel receives list for fourth hostage release 

Israel has received the list of 11 hostages set to be released Monday, confirmed the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, adding that the list is currently being verified. Hamas has so far freed 39 hostages in three groups over the past three days. The deal that was originally struck between Israel and Hamas included the release of 50 Israeli hostages over a four-day period in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners. 

Click here for our most recent updates.