内容摘要：Israel’s offensive has killed more than 52,000 people in Gaza, many of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. The officials do not distinguish between combatants and civilians in their count.

Israel’s offensive has killed more than 52,000 people in Gaza, many of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. The officials do not distinguish between combatants and civilians in their count.

to end the war. The plan sought to strengthen Kyiv’s negotiating hand and proposed measures to boost its military potential, but also economic partnerships with Western allies.Ukraine is rich in natural resources, including

such as uranium, titanium, lithium, and graphite.Zelenskyy pitched the plan to the White House during a visit to Washington in late September, and later in a meeting with Trump at Trump Tower in New York.Giving American companies preferential access to Ukraine would serve as leverage against Russia as most mineral deposits are located very close to front-line areas. Having U.S. companies on the ground, the thinking goes, would cement Washington’s interests in Ukraine and serve as a de facto security guarantee. Critical minerals used to manufacture weapons, aviation and batteries would also give the U.S. access to reserves in a global market dominated by China.

Trump appeared captivated by the idea and very soon after his inauguration in January started touting the idea of getting Ukraine’s rare earth elements.By February, the White House and Ukraine appear to have made

toward reaching an agreement that would provide the U.S. with access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals.

On Feb. 12, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent became the first senior Trump administration official to visit Kyiv. Zelenskyy was expected to sign the deal that day amid aNo Israeli officials have reached out to the Bohbot family to say the number of hostages believed to be alive had changed. Yet Bohbot thought back to a public event last week, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said 24 of the hostages still in Gaza were alive. A mic picked up his wife, Sara, as she quietly said, “fewer.”

Later, Netanyahu’s office dismissed the moment as a slip of the tongue.“So we’re just continuing to live in hope that everything will be OK ... even amidst all of the things that are not OK. Because it’s impossible to know,” Bohbot said.

Netanyahu said late Wednesday Israel was confident that 21 of the 59 remaining hostages are still alive but that there was “doubt” about three others. An Israeli official said the three, who he did not identify, are considered alive until there is evidence proving otherwise. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details.Ruhama Bohbot, mother of hostage Elkana Bohbot, has a picture of her son on display at her home in Mevaseret Zion, Israel, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)