Gaza ceasefire live: Hamas expected to release three Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners

Names of three Israeli civilians to be released by Hamas unveiled ahead of expected release of 183 Palestinian prisoners.

Welcome to our live coverage of the latest news from the Middle East, with the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners expected to take place on Saturday as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

Hamas has named the three to be released in the fifth exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinians jailed in Israel as civilians Eli Sharabi, Ohad ben Ami and Or Levy.

The United States has approved the sale of more than $7.4bn in bombs, missiles and related equipment to Israel. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the proposed sale – which still technically requires the approval of Congress – “improves Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats, strengthen its homeland defense, and serves as a deterrent to regional threats”.

Global aid agency the Norwegian Refugee Council said humanitarian efforts in Gaza remained in an “emergency crisis setting”. Communications adviser Shaina Low said more aid had been able to enter the territory since the ceasefire but that there were still “delays in screening certain types of material”.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is still in the US and has delivered a joint press conference with US house speaker Mike Johnson. Netanyahu praised President Trump for lifting bans on the provision of certain weapons that were in place under the Biden administration and said there was no “future for peace” in his region if Hamas remained there.

The international criminal court (ICC) condemned Trump’s executive order announcing sanctions against the court, accusing the US president of trying to “harm its independent and impartial judicial” work. “The court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world,” it said.

The UK has “no plans” to impose similar sanctions and will “support the independence of the ICC”, a spokesperson for prime minister Keir Starmer said. The UK and the US “over a number of administrations have taken a different view on the ICC”, they added.

France, Germany and the Netherlands all spoke out against the sanctions. Dutch prime minister Dick Schoof said that, as the host of the court, the Netherlands had a “responsibility to guarantee the unhindered functioning of the criminal court at all times. We will keep doing that.”.

The UN also called on Trump to criticised the sanctions. “We deeply regret the individual sanctions announced yesterday against court personnel, and call for this measure to be reversed,” human rights office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said. Trump’s order said the court had “engaged in illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel” and vowed to “impose tangible and significant consequences on those responsible for the ICC’s transgressions”.