Middle East latest: Israeli military says it struck 2 people in Gaza who were flying a drone

The Israeli military said Wednesday it struck two people in the southern Gaza Strip who were flying a drone, which was allegedly observed entering Gaza from Israel after past attempts to use drones to smuggle in weapons. Gaza's Health Ministry says a 44-year-old man was killed in an Israeli strike near the southern city of Rafah on Wednesday, without providing further details.

Israeli fire has killed at least 92 Palestinians and wounded more than 800 others since the fragile ceasefire took hold on Jan. 19, said Munir al-Bursh, director general of the Health Ministry, on Tuesday. The Israeli military says it has fired upon people who approach its forces or enter certain areas in alleged violation of the truce.

The ceasefire faces a major test as Hamas has threatened to delay the next release of hostages scheduled for Saturday, accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement by firing on people and by not allowing the stipulated amounts of tents, shelters and other vital aid to enter the territory.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with the support of President Donald Trump, has warned that Israel would resume fighting if hostages are not freed on Saturday. Trump has threated that "all hell" will break out if the militant group does not release the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza by Saturday.

Here’s the latest:

Egyptian and Qatari mediators are pushing to save the Gaza ceasefire

CAIRO — Egypt’s state-run Al-Qahera News TV reported Wednesday that Egyptian and Qatari mediators are working to salvage the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, which risks being derailed over a dispute between the sides.

The TV channel, which is close to Egyptian security agencies, said mediators were intensifying efforts to bring the deal back from the brink. Citing an unnamed Egyptian official, the channel reported that Egyptian and Qatari mediators have been working to find a settlement that ensures “a balanced implementation” of the deal.

Hamas official Mahmoud Merdawi said there were “positive signals” that the hostages will be released as planned on Saturday.

He told The Associated Press that mediators were working to finalize the settlement but “we have yet to receive Israel’s commitment to implement the full terms of the deal, especially the humanitarian protocol.”

Israeli officials had no immediate comment.

Putin holds phone call with Syria's new president

BEIRUT — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that his country is ready to help improve Syria’s social and economic situation, including through humanitarian aid, during a phone call with President Ahmad Sharaa of Syria, according to the country's state-run news agency.

Syria's new authorities have not cut off relations with Moscow, which long supported the ousted President Bashar Assad during the county's civil war, or forced a complete exit of Russian military forces from bases in Syria. Al-Sharaa led the insurgents that toppled Assad in December.

The Kremlin said Putin, in his call with Sharaa, reaffirmed his support for “Syria’s unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” according to SANA.

The Kremlin also emphasized Russia’s role in rebuilding trust through reparations, reconstruction and “transitional justice for the victims of the brutal war waged by Assad.”

The family of a Gaza doctor says he was tortured in Israeli detention

JERUSALEM — The family of a prominent Gaza Strip physician who was detained by Israeli forces when they raided a hospital in December says he was tortured by the army and kept in solitary confinement for 24 days.

Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya's family said he's currently in the Ofer prison near Jerusalem, where he met with a lawyer for the first time on Tuesday. They said there are no charges against him, hoping that means he could be released soon.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military or the Prison Service

The Al Mezan rights group said one of its lawyers was able to visit him on Tuesday for the first time since his detention. The group said the physician was initially taken to the Sde Teiman facility in southern Israel, where former detainees and rights groups have reported rampant abuses.

“He reported being forcibly stripped, having his hands tightly shackled, and being made to sit on sharp gravel for approximately five hours by Israeli forces,” it said, adding that he was also beaten with batons and subjected to electric shocks.

Abu Safiya was the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the last functioning medical facilities in northern Gaza that was raided in December. Israel's military said Hamas militants were using the facility and that over 240 suspects were detained.

Israel has raided several Gaza hospitals during the 15-month war sparked by Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack. It accuses Hamas and other militants of using hospitals for military purposes, something hospital officials have denied.

Israel says it struck 2 people in Gaza

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — The Israeli military says it struck two people in the southern Gaza Strip who were allegedly flying a drone.

The military said Wednesday that the drone was observed entering Gaza from Israel after past attempts to use drones to smuggle in weapons.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says a 44-year-old man was killed in an Israeli strike near the southern city of Rafah on Wednesday, without providing further details.