Fears grow for Israel-Gaza ceasefire after Netanyahu threatens war | First Thing

Netanyahu says fighting will resume if Hamas does not release hostages by Saturday. Plus, Musk finally questioned by reporters over Doge

Good morning.

Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would resume fighting in Gaza if Hamas did not release more hostages by noon on Saturday, endorsing a threat by Donald Trump that could shatter the three-week-old ceasefire between the two sides.

What did Netanyahu say? If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon - the ceasefire will end, and the IDF will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated," he said.

What about Hamas? Hamas said on Monday it would delay the release of Israeli hostages indefinitely over violations" of the ceasefire deal. On Tuesday, Hamas had softened its stance, reiterating its commitment to a diplomatic solution.

This is a developing story. Follow our live blog here.

What's the latest on Musk's slash and burn campaign? Doge has terminated nearly $1bn in Department of Education contracts. On Monday, it said $101m was slashed from 29 DEI training grants; on Tuesday, it said $881m in contracts was wiped out - including the federal agency's research and statistics office.

What was that about transparency? The Associated Press said it was barred from sending a reporter to the Oval Office executive order signing, in an effort to punish" the agency for upholding the use of the name of the Gulf of Mexico.