Middle East latest: Netanyahu appoints an adviser with Trump ties to lead ceasefire talks

An Israeli official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appointed a close confidant to lead negotiations for the second stage of the ceasefire with Hamas.

The U.S.-born Ron Dermer is a Cabinet minister who's widely seen as Netanyahu’s closest adviser. He previously served as Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. and is a former Republican activist with strong ties to the Trump White House.

Israel and Hamas have yet to negotiate the second and more difficult phase of the ceasefire, and the first ends in early March. Palestinians and Arab countries have universally rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to remove the Palestinian population from Gaza and take over the territory.

Since the war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, 2023, more than 50,000 people have died in Gaza and Lebanon and nearly 70% of the buildings in Gaza have been devastated, according to health ministries in Gaza and Lebanon. Around 1,200 people were killed in Israel during the Oct. 7 attack.

Here's the latest:

Israel's latest raid in the West Bank kills 3 Palestinians

The Israeli military said Wednesday it killed three Palestinians during a raid in the occupied West Bank.

The military said those killed were wanted militants. The Palestinian Health Ministry did not immediately confirm the deaths and there was no immediate comment from militant groups.

Israel said the men were wanted for selling weapons for use in militant activities. It said it arrested two other people during the raid.

Israeli forces has been cracking down in a broad offensive in the West Bank in recent weeks, escalating a surge of violence in the occupied territory since the war in Gaza erupted. West Bank health officials say more than 800 Palestinians have been killed during that time.

Israel says many of the dead are militants, however young people protesting the incursions and others not involved in the confrontations have also been killed.

Israel can now bar people's entry over Oct. 7 denial or supporting prosecution of soldiers

People can now be banned from entering Israel if authorities say they denied Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack or expressed support for the international prosecution of Israeli soldiers.

The law, which affects non-citizens and non-residents of Israel, was passed by Israeli legislators on Wednesday.

It builds on previous legislation that denied entry to the country to people who call for a boycott of Israel. The law also bans entry to people who deny the Holocaust.

The original law was seen by opponents as an attempt by Israel to silence critics, and it was used on multiple occasions to bar entry to activists who supported a boycott against the country.

Netanyahu describes his country's pain as Israel awaits the bodies of 4 hostages in Gaza

“The heart of an entire nation breaks,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday.

The bodies of Shiri Bibas, her two young sons Ariel and Kfir, and Oded Lifshitz are scheduled to be returned to Israel from Gaza on Thursday.

The Bibas children had become a symbol of the struggle to free the hostages who remained in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

Israel confirms the identities of four dead hostages who will be returned from Gaza

An Israeli official says the bodies of two young brothers, their mother, and a man in his 80s are expected to be returned to Israel on Thursday as part of the ceasefire with Hamas.

It was the first Israeli confirmation that the bodies of Ariel and Kfir Bibas, who were 4 years old and 9 months old when they were taken captive on Oct. 7, 2023, were being returned along with their mother Shiri.

The body of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted, will also be returned, the official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations. The grassroots group representing hostage families also confirmed the names.

Hamas says all four were had been killed by Israeli fire. Israel had previously said it had ”grave concern” for the lives of the Bibas family.