Israel and Hamas agree to an exchange that ends the first phase of the ceasefire, both sides say

JERUSALEM – Israeli and Hamas officials on Tuesday agreed to exchange the remains of four Israeli hostages for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, leaving the fragile ceasefire in place for at least several days He said. Israel said the exchange would take place late Wednesday evening.

Israel has It delayed the release of 600 Palestinian prisoners from Saturday Since the ceasefire came into effect on January 19, Hamas’ cruel treatment of hostages during its release has resulted in terrorist groups calling the delay a “serious violation” of the ceasefire, making meetings impossible in the second phase He says that. The prisoners are released.

Deadlock had threatened to collapse the ceasefire on Saturday when the current six-week first phase expires. However, late Tuesday, Hamas said an agreement was reached to resolve the dispute during a meeting in Cairo.

In a brief statement on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed that an agreement was reached by mediators, saying, “Our four fallen hostages are under the agreed process.” , will be returned tonight as part of Phase A, without Hamas rituals.

The breakthrough appeared to clear the path to the return of four more dead hostages and hundreds of Israeli-held prisoners, which are due to be released under the ceasefire. .

The prisoners who had previously been scheduled for release will be “released at the same time as the bodies of the Israeli prisoners who have been agreed to be extradited,” Hamas said in a statement.

So far, Hamas has released the bodies of living Israeli hostages and prisoners who died in a massive ritual in which Israelis were paraded and forced to wave to the massive crowd. Israel, along with Red Cross and UN officials, has said the ritual is humiliating to hostages, and Israel delayed the release of prisoners scheduled for protests last weekend.

The latest agreement will complete the obligations of both stage one of the ceasefires – meant Hamas will return 33 hostages, including eight bodies, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. I will.

It also makes clear how likely the White House Mid East Emvoice Steve Witkov will make a visit to the area more likely.

He said at an event for the US Jewish Commission at Tuesday’s event in Washington that Israeli representatives are already on the way to engage in consultations at the next stage of the ceasefire agreement, and he also said that he was the local government. I repeated that I was ready to go back to. To AFP, a news agency in France.

“We’ve made a lot of progress. Israel is sending a team now while we talk,” Witkov said, adding that there could be a discussion in Qatar’s capital, Cairo or Doha. I added.

Witkov says he hopes that the sides will move into negotiations in the second phase, where all hostages Hamas holds will be released and the end of the war will be negotiated. The Phase Two lecture was supposed to start a few weeks ago, but never began.

A ceasefire mediated by the US, Egypt and Qatar ended a heavy 15-month battle Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7, 2023extremists killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 others as hostages.

Israeli military attacks have killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, expelled an estimated 90% of the enclave’s population, and destroyed the territorial infrastructure and healthcare system, according to Gaza’s Hamasran Ministry of Health. Health Munislist does not distinguish between civilians and extremist victims, but says that more than half of the deaths were women and children.

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