Hamas to release six Israeli captives, hand over four bodies this week

Hamas will release six Israeli captives and hand over the bodies of four others this week as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, the group’s leader in the enclave said.

Khalil al-Hayya, head of the Palestinian group in Gaza said the handover of the bodies will take place in Gaza on Thursday and that six living Israeli captives will be released on Saturday.

“Hamas has proven, along with the resistance, its seriousness in implementing the agreement with full responsibility,” he said on Tuesday. “We stress the need to oblige the occupation to implement all provisions of the agreement without procrastination.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that talks in Egypt resulted in an agreement on the release of six living Israeli captives on Saturday as part of the first phase of the ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Israel will also receive the bodies of four dead captives on Thursday, before another four bodies later next week, the statement said.

The first phase of the Gaza truce, which was brokered by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, is due to expire on March 1. Negotiations on the next stages, including a permanent end to the war, have not yet begun.

Reporting from Amman, Jordan, media’s Hamdah Salhut said the releases could be a major development regarding negotiations on phase two of the ceasefire.

“Hamas said they are doing this because they want the second phase to take place. The Israelis have been asking for this for about a week now, saying they want the bodies of some captives to be released sooner than the end of phase one,” she said.

Salhut noted that the bodies of members of the Bibas family were expected to be handed over on Thursday. In November 2023, Hamas announced the family was killed in an Israeli air strike.