The Israeli military said a ceasefire in Gaza took effect at 0900 GMT on Friday, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a truce and hostage-release deal proposed by US President Donald Trump.

The Nobel Peace Prize was on Friday awarded to Venezuela’s opposition leader and democracy activist Maria Corina Machado, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.

Burkina Faso, ruled by a junta hostile to the West, has refused to take in people kicked out of the United States, in a snub to one of President Donald Trump’s signature migration policies.

Ukraine said on Friday that Russia had launched a “massive attack” on the capital Kyiv, triggering power cuts as a minister warned that Moscow was also striking hard at the national energy grid.

He said ECOWAS has had to engage additional recruitment firms and is now working to introduce an e-recruitment system to fast-track applications and interviews.

Israel said Thursday that the final draft of the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas had been signed by all parties in Egypt.

Concerns over flight delays and missed paychecks due to the US government shutdown escalated Wednesday, as senators rejected yet another bid to end the standoff.

US President Donald Trump said he believes all the hostages held in Gaza, including the bodies of those deceased, will be “coming back” Monday after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire.

The global economy is doing better than expected, even as it faces prolonged uncertainty and underwhelming medium-term growth prospects, the head of the IMF said Wednesday.

The two leaders met at an air base in the Alaskan city of Anchorage in August, but failed to reach any kind of peace agreement to end the fighting.