ISTANBUL 

Here is a rundown of all the news you need to start your Friday, including the Israeli government approving a US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal, US President Donald Trump saying no one will be forced to leave Gaza, and Trump saying the US is “stepping up the pressure” for a Ukraine deal alongside NATO

TOP STORIES

• Israeli government approves Gaza ceasefire deal

The Israeli government approved an agreement to end the war in Gaza and exchange prisoners with Palestinian factions, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.

The announcement came after the Cabinet held a meeting to vote on a ceasefire and hostage release agreement for the Gaza Strip.

"The government, headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, approved the agreement to end the war in the Gaza Strip and return all hostages (Israeli prisoners in Gaza)," it said.

According to Israel's public broadcaster KAN, the official approval means the ceasefire agreement will enter into immediate effect.

• Trump says no one will be forced to leave Gaza

US President Donald Trump said that no one will be forced to leave Gaza under his ceasefire plan.

“Nobody is going to be forced to leave. It is the opposite...No, we're not looking to do that at all,” Trump said when asked by a reporter whether Palestinians will be forced to leave Gaza under the US-proposed ceasefire deal.

He said the Gaza ceasefire deal has been “all finalized and done” and that he plans to travel to the Middle East this weekend.

“I think it's going to be great. I think the hostages will be coming back Monday or Tuesday. I'll probably be there. I hope to be there. And we're planning on leaving sometime Sunday, and I look forward to it,” he told reporters at the Oval Office.

• Trump says US 'stepping up the pressure' for Ukraine deal alongside NATO

US President Donald Trump said he is tightening the screws on Russia alongside NATO allies to secure a long-elusive deal to end the Kremlin's war on Ukraine.

"We are stepping up the pressure. We're stepping it up together. We're all stepping it up. NATO has been great," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office as he hosted Finnish President Alexander Stubb. "We're selling a lot of weapons to NATO, and that's going, I guess, to Ukraine for the most part. That's up to them, but they're buying weapons from the US. We make the greatest weapons in the world."

NEWS IN BRIEF

• A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking President Donald Trump from deploying the National Guard to the US state of Illinois, according to media reports.
• Belgian authorities have detained three people suspected of planning a terrorist attack targeting politicians, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced.
• Franciszek Sterczewski, the Polish MP detained in Israel following an Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla last week, has been fined by his ruling party the Civic Coalition (PO) for "unexcused absence from parliamentary (Sejm) sessions," local media reported
• US congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna announced that she formally nominated President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
• UN relief chief Tom Fletcher said his agency has a detailed humanitarian plan ready to deliver aid across the Gaza Strip after a ceasefire deal was reached, warning that funding and access remain critical.
• Hamas said it has received guarantees from the mediators and the US that the Israeli war in the Gaza Strip has "fully ended."
• French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that France and its partners are working with the US and Arab states to implement the newly agreed ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
• US President Donald Trump said that Iran is seeking to work on a broader Middle East peace deal after lending its support to his plan to bring a ceasefire to the Gaza Strip.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed support for US President Donald Trump’s initiatives to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip, calling them a realistic step toward peace.
• Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov met his Georgian counterpart, Irakli Chikovani, in Ankara to discuss strengthening military cooperation and expanding joint exercises.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• US probing nearly 3M Tesla cars for self-driving safety risks

US auto safety regulators have opened an investigation into nearly 2.9 million Tesla vehicles following reports of crashes and traffic violations linked to the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said its Office of Defects Investigation is examining Tesla models equipped with “FSD (Supervised)” and “FSD (Beta)” systems.

The software, marketed as a step toward autonomous driving, requires drivers to remain alert and ready to take control at any moment.

The NHTSA said in a filing published on its website that the investigation aims to determine whether Tesla’s driver-assistance software “induces vehicle behavior that violates traffic safety laws.”

• Türkiye's BIST 100 index down at Thursday's close

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Turkish benchmark stock index closed at 10,726.98 points, down 0.27% from the previous close.

The BIST 100 index, after starting the day at 10,856.73, lost 29.29 points from Wednesday's close.

The lowest point for the index was 10,684.04, while the daily high was 10,862.75.

During the day, 47 indexes gained in value, while 48 closed with losses.