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With the first phase of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas drawing to a close in the Gaza Strip, the future of the truce deal seems to be hanging in balance as Israel announced that it is delaying the release of 620 Palestinian prisoners until it is given assurances that the next set of Israeli hostages will be released without subjecting them to any “humiliation”.
In a major development, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Office said that the move has been taken in light of Hamas’s repeated violations, holding of ceremonies to humiliate the hostages, and their exploitation for propaganda purposes.
“In light of Hamas’s repeated violations, including the ceremonies that humiliate our hostages and the cynical exploitation of our hostages for propaganda purposes…it has been decided to delay the release of terrorists that was planned for yesterday until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies,” the Israel PMO asserted in a post on X.
Israel’s Claim on Hostages’ Handover Ceremony Pretext to Evade Obligations: Hamas
While Hamas, on its part, has said that Israel’s claim was false and a pretext to evade its obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
“Netanyahu’s decision reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a clear violation of its terms, and shows the occupation’s lack of reliability in implementing its obligations,” Reuters quoted Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, as saying in a statement.
Meanwhile, Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif al-Qanou, also reportedly issued a statement accusing Netanyahu of “procrastination and stalling tactics”.
“The [Israeli] occupation’s failure to comply with the release of the seventh batch of prisoners in the exchange deal at the agreed-upon time constitutes a blatant violation of the agreement,” The Guardian quoted al-Qanou as saying.
Notably, Hamas had on Saturday released six Israeli hostages from Gaza in two public ceremonies and one private transfer as a part of the final return of live hostages in the first phase of a ceasefire deal that began last month.
In return, Israel was expected to free 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including 23 children and one woman. Israeli officials, however, have put that on hold, citing further security reviews.
Global outrage was observed after the “cold-blooded” murder of the Bibas brothers came to the fore when their human remains arrived in Israel.
Citing forensic reports, Israel on Friday had said that the Bibas brothers – Ariel Bibas (4) and Kfir Bibas (10-months-old) – whose corpses were returned by Hamas, were killed with “bare hands” by the group’s militants, days after they were held captive in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) alleged that after killing the two kids in ‘cold blood,’ Hamas tried to cover up the horrific acts.
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