2023-11-25 23:10:00
A second group of hostages are free as part of an agreement between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza war. The 13 Israelis and four Thai citizens have arrived in Israel, the army reported.
After the ceasefire in the Gaza war began, the Islamist Hamas has released a second group of hostages. As the Israeli army announced, the freed people returned to Israeli territory in the evening. According to Egyptian and Israeli authorities, the released hostages are 13 Israelis and four Thais. “After an initial medical examination, they will continue to be accompanied by IDF soldiers on their way to Israeli hospitals, where they will be reunited with their families,” the Israeli military (IDF) said. The hostages had previously been brought from the Gaza Strip across the border into Egypt by the Red Cross.
According to the army, the convoy with the released hostages first drove to the nearby Israeli border crossing at Kerem Shalom. Security representatives there wanted to check the list of names. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the government “embraces the hostages coming home.”
Hamas initially delayed the handover
In return, 39 Palestinian prisoners are to be released from Israeli prisons that night. According to Hamas, among them are six women and 33 male youths under the age of 19. The prisoners are to be released near their homes in the West Bank or East Jerusalem.
Just a few hours before the hostages were released, Hamas surprisingly stopped a handover at the last minute. The reason given by the terrorist organization was that, in its view, Israel had violated part of the hostage deal. She accused Israel of not allowing sufficient aid deliveries to the northern part of the Gaza Strip as agreed.
It initially remained unclear whether this was actually part of the agreement brokered by Qatar between the two parties to the conflict. In Israel there was always talk of enabling transport of relief goods such as food and fuel to the south, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled from the fighting in the north.
Qatar and Egypt mediated
With the mediation of Egypt and Qatar, Hamas finally gave in late on Saturday evening. In return for the transfer of hostages to Israel, 39 Palestinian prisoners are to be released from Israeli prisons. According to Hamas, among them are six women and 33 male youths under the age of 19.
Before the Qatari delegation announced the basic agreement on an agreement in the evening, several Israeli media outlets reported that Israel’s government had threatened to resume the offensive in the Gaza Strip if the hostages kidnapped by Hamas were not released by midnight. However, there was no official confirmation of this report.
Unclear situation in the afternoon
The hostages were originally expected to be released on Saturday at 3 p.m. German time. According to Israeli information, 14 Israeli hostages were to be released as part of the agreement brokered by Qatar, among others. Israel had previously said it had received a list of hostages selected by Hamas to leave the Gaza Strip. In return, Israel wanted to release 42 convicted Palestinian prisoners, Israeli prison authorities said.
In the afternoon there were already initial reports that the handover of the hostages had begun. Hamas and Israeli security circles later denied this. It was unclear for hours afterwards how long the announced delay would last.
Qatar sees opportunities for a longer ceasefire
Israel and Hamas agreed on Wednesday to a four-day ceasefire after lengthy negotiations mediated by Qatar, the United States and Egypt, the first since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. The agreement stipulates that a total of 50 Israeli hostages held by Hamas and 150 Palestinian prisoners are to be released.
An extension of the ceasefire that began on Friday morning to up to ten days is possible, as the Gulf Emirate of Qatar, which is mediating in the conflict, announced. Overall, the agreement actually provides for an exchange of up to 100 hostages from Israel for up to 300 Palestinian prisoners.
On Friday, 24 hostages – 13 Israelis and 11 foreigners – were released in the first handover. Among them were four German-Israelis. In return, 39 Palestinian prisoners were released from Israeli prisons. The agreement between Israel and Hamas stipulates that for every Israeli hostage, three Palestinian prisoners should be released.
1,200 killed in Hamas attack
According to Israeli sources, Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in an attack in southern Israel on October 7th. Around 240 people were taken hostage to the Gaza Strip, including several German citizens and citizens of other countries. Israel then launched a large-scale military operation with the stated aim of ending the threat to its own country from attacks from the Gaza Strip.
Israel attacked the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip from the air, sea and ground. According to Hamas figures, which cannot be independently verified, more than 14,800 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since then. 40 percent of them are said to have been children.
Björn Dake, ARD Tel Aviv, tagesschau, November 25, 2023 10:36 p.m
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