Hamas Ready to Free 34 Captives Under Ceasefire Deal Amid Ongoing Negotiations
Hamas has announced its readiness to release
34 captives as part of a ceasefire deal with Israel, according to reports from
Reuters and AFP. A Hamas official confirmed that the captives would be freed in
the first phase of a prisoner exchange agreement. This initial release will
include women, children, elderly individuals, and those in poor health who are
being held in Gaza.
However, Hamas has requested time to assess
the condition of the captives before proceeding with the release. A Hamas
official stated, “Hamas has agreed to release the 34 prisoners, whether alive
or dead. But the group needs a week of calm to communicate with the captors and
determine which captives are alive and which are deceased.”
As the situation stands, the release of the
captives is contingent on Israel agreeing to a permanent ceasefire and
withdrawing from Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has
responded, noting that no details regarding the 34 captives have been shared by
Hamas. "Israel has not received any confirmation or comment by Hamas
regarding the status of the hostages on the list," the statement said.
Meanwhile, negotiations for a ceasefire deal
are ongoing in Qatar, with U.S. President Joe Biden's administration mediating
the talks. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed hope for a
breakthrough before the end of the Biden administration. "We very much
want to bring this over the finish line in the next two weeks," Blinken
said during a press conference in South Korea. "If we don’t get it across the
finish line in the next two weeks, I’m confident that it will get completed at
some point, hopefully sooner rather than later."
The next two weeks remain critical as both
sides work to reach an agreement on the future of Gaza and the captives.
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