Hamas to free 6 Israeli Gaza hostages, hand over 4 bodies this week
JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) – Hamas said Tuesday that it would hand over all six living Israeli hostages due for release under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire this week, as well as the bodies of four dead captives.
The fragile Gaza truce took effect on January 19 after more than 15 months of fighting between Israel and Hamas, sparked by the Palestinian militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Thirty-three Israeli hostages were due to be released under the first phase, with 19 freed so far in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinian prisoners. Of the remaining 14, Israel says eight are dead.
Five Thai nationals held in Gaza since the 2023 attack have also been released outside the scope of the truce deal.
Hamas “decided to release on Saturday, February 22, the remaining living (Israeli) prisoners whose release was agreed in the first phase, numbering six”, the group’s top negotiator Khalil al-Hayya said in a televised address.
The group had also “decided to hand over four bodies on Thursday… and the enemy will release the corresponding prisoners”, Hayya said.
Israel subsequently confirmed the arrangements, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office saying that during indirect negotiations in Cairo, “agreements were reached” for the six living hostages to be released on Saturday.
It added that the bodies of four hostages would be returned on Thursday, ahead of four others next week.
These would be the first bodies returned by Hamas to Israel since the start of the war.
A Palestinian source close to the negotiations said mediators had presented the request for the new releases, adding they aimed “for this step to create a positive atmosphere, insisting on the continuation of the ceasefire”.
The first phase of the truce is due to expire on March 1, and negotiations on the next stages, including a permanent end to the war, have not yet begun.
The truce deal has so far held despite both sides trading accusations of violations, and despite the strain placed on it by US President Donald Trump’s widely condemned plan to take control of Gaza and relocate its population.
