Macron Calls for Fresh Talks to Free Gaza Hostages

French President Emmanuel Macron. (File: AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron. (File: AFP)
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Macron Calls for Fresh Talks to Free Gaza Hostages

French President Emmanuel Macron. (File: AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron. (File: AFP)

France's President Emmanuel Macron called Saturday for fresh talks for the release of the hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip

"The French nation is determined that... all the hostages of the October 7 terrorist attacks are freed," he said in a video posted online and broadcast at a meeting in Tel Aviv in support of the hostages, AFP reported.

"France does not abandon its children," he added. "That is why we have to resume negotiations again and again for their release."

During its October 7 attack, Hamas seized about 250 hostages, 132 of whom Israel says remain in Gaza, including at least 25 believed to have been killed.

Three French citizens remain unaccounted for following the October 7 attack and are thought to be among the hostages held in Gaza.

On December 15, the Israeli army announced the death of Franco-Israeli Elya Toledano, who was captured and abducted while attending a desert rave party called the Supernova festival.

His friend, fellow French-Israeli Mia Shem, was among those released under a truce agreement at the end of November.

Israel retaliated to the October 7 attack with a relentless bombing campaign and a ground offensive that the authorities in Gaza said Saturday had killed 23,843 people, mainly women and children.



Syrian Presidency Says Ceasefire in Place, Urges Parties to Respect it

Bedouin fighters from various provinces gather at Umayyad Square in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, July 19, 2025, before heading to the southern province of Sweida to join clashes between Bedouin clans and Druze fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Bedouin fighters from various provinces gather at Umayyad Square in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, July 19, 2025, before heading to the southern province of Sweida to join clashes between Bedouin clans and Druze fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
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Syrian Presidency Says Ceasefire in Place, Urges Parties to Respect it

Bedouin fighters from various provinces gather at Umayyad Square in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, July 19, 2025, before heading to the southern province of Sweida to join clashes between Bedouin clans and Druze fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Bedouin fighters from various provinces gather at Umayyad Square in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, July 19, 2025, before heading to the southern province of Sweida to join clashes between Bedouin clans and Druze fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

The Syrian government said its internal security forces began deploying in Sweida on Saturday as the presidency called on all parties to respect a ceasefire following bloodshed in the area that has left hundreds dead.

In a statement, the Syrian presidency announced an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire and urged all parties to commit to it and end hostilities in all areas immediately.

The country's interior ministry spokesperson said earlier on Saturday that internal security forces had begun deploying in Sweida, in southern Syria.

US envoy Tom Barrack announced on Friday that Syria and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire. Israel intervened in the conflict earlier this week, hitting government forces and the defense ministry building in Damascus as it declared support for the Druze minority.

Syria's Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence which began with clashes between Bedouin fighters and Druze factions, before drawing in government security forces that were sent to the area by Damascus.