Hamas signalled on Wednesday that it was willing to free all remaining hostages held in Gaza in a single swap during the next phase of the ongoing ceasefire agreement.
Israel and Hamas are currently in the process of implementing phase one of the fragile Gaza truce, which has held since taking effect on January 19 despite accusations of violations on both sides.
"We have informed the mediators that Hamas is ready to release all hostages in one batch during the second phase of the agreement, rather than in stages, as in the current first phase," said Taher al-Nunu.
Mr Nunu did not clarify how many hostages were currently held by Hamas or other militant groups.
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Nunu said this step was meant “to confirm our seriousness and complete readiness to move forward in resolving this issue, as well as to continue steps towards cementing the ceasefire and achieving a sustainable truce”.
ReplyDeleteUnder the ceasefire’s first phase, 19 Israeli hostages have been released by militants so far in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinian prisoners freed from Israeli jails in a series of Red Cross-mediated swaps.