Preparing for deal, Hamas tells fellow Gazan terror groups to identify hostages they hold
Israeli official says two recent propaganda videos released by Hamas of young male hostages indicate the group is looking for a comprehensive deal to free all captives
Sources within various Palestinian terror groups in Gaza said Sunday that Hamas has told them to compile information on the hostages they hold in preparation for a potential ceasefire and hostage deal with Israel.
Hamas has told factions including Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front and the Popular Resistance Committees to prepare information such as whether their hostages are alive or dead, the sources told AFP.
Qatar’s prime minister said on Saturday that there was renewed “momentum” for a ceasefire and hostage release deal following the election of Donald Trump in the United States.
A Hamas source told AFP there had been “intensified contacts” recently between Hamas and Qatari, Egyptian and Turkish mediators, and that the group expects a new round of talks in Cairo “will begin in the coming days.”
The same source called on Israel to halt the war, claiming the presence of its forces made it “difficult to reach all the captive groups to know the details of the living and dead prisoners.”
Israel has long said it won’t halt fighting without the return of all hostages and the defeat of Hamas as a military and governing force in Gaza.
Amid its murderous onslaught on October 7, 2023, Hamas and terror groups took 251 hostages from Israel into Gaza. Since then, 109 of them have been released, mostly during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, eight have been rescued alive and the bodies of 38 have been recovered.
Israel believes that 96 hostages taken captive on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 34 confirmed dead by the IDF — including those killed during by Hamas during the initial onslaught as well as those slain in captivity.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday evening that Israel is working to “take advantage of every opportunity that arises to advance negotiations.” His office said he made the comments in a conversation with Einav Zangauker, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, after Hamas released a propaganda video showing the first sign of life from Matan after 14 months in captivity.
An Israeli official told The Times of Israel on Sunday that the two recent hostage videos released by Hamas – of Zangauker and US-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander – lead Israel to believe that the Palestinian terror group is looking for a comprehensive deal to free all captives.
Neither of the young men is classified in the “humanitarian” category, and as such would not have been freed in a partial release proposal that was discussed last week.
There are low-level talks about the hostages all the time, the official said, but a senior official delegation will only be sent to Cairo if Israel sees that there has been real progress.
Now that there is some positive movement toward a deal, the official said, Qatar is trying to “get back into the spotlight” and be in the position to take credit for a hostage release and ceasefire.
The Israeli official said that the Egyptian proposal floated last week would see an extended ceasefire that would allow the elderly, children, women, ill and badly wounded hostages to be released. The number of living hostages in these groups is today understood to be fewer than the 33 that was previously discussed in talks over past months.
Hamas has until now repeatedly refused agreements that do not include a permanent end to the war and a full withdrawal of Israeli troops.
