Overview

• Israeli authorities identified the body of 75-year-old Eliyahu Margalit among remains returned under the U.S.-brokered deal, as Hamas said it would hand over two more bodies to reach 12 of 28 promised.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Rafah crossing will stay closed until all bodies of Israeli hostages are returned, pressing leverage over border access under the ceasefire framework.
• EUNAVFOR ASPIDES reported the Cameroon-flagged MV Falcon drifting and on fire southeast of Aden with a rescue underway, UKMTO opened a probe, preliminary information pointed to an accident, and Houthi officials denied any role.
• The U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrest in Louisiana of Mahmoud al-Mukhtadi, accused of taking part in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, with JTF 10-7 and the FBI leading the investigation alongside Israeli authorities.
• Ukraine’s General Staff reported 223 clashes in a day, confirmed strikes on Russia’s Novokuybyshevsk refinery and the Orenburg gas plant, and documented Russia’s first confirmed guided bomb strike on Lozova that injured civilians.