U.S. Middle East Policy

After Israel said it had recovered the remains of the final hostage and completed the exchanges, the U.N. pressed Israel and Hamas to clarify plans for reopening the Rafah crossing and for moving to phase two of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Israel says Rafah will reopen "for pedestrian passage only, subject to a full Israeli inspection mechanism," while Hamas and Egypt demand an immediate unrestricted two-way opening; the U.N. is seeking clarity on whether humanitarian and private cargo will be allowed as trucks remain queued and Ali Shaath said the crossing could open this week. Israeli leaders and some U.S. backers publicly credited former President Trump and others for their role in securing the returns.

The U.S. has begun relocating ISIS detainees from northeastern Syria to Iraq — moving about 150 so far and preparing to transfer potentially thousands of the roughly 9,000–10,000 detainees — even as a fragile ceasefire has allowed Syrian government forces to assume control of former SDF prisons (notably Al‑Shaddadi and al‑Aqtan) amid reports of prisoner escapes and subsequent recaptures. At the same time Washington has signaled a policy shift toward engaging Syria’s new government — envoy Tom Barrack met President Ahmad al‑Sharaa and described the SDF’s original counter‑ISIS role as “largely expired” — prompting U.S. force repositioning and bipartisan concern about protecting Kurdish partners.