The Palestinian group Hamas has handed over to Israel all the hostages who were still alive of the total of 48 who remained in Gaza two years after being kidnapped. The Red Cross first received seven of the 20 hostages shortly after 8:00 a.m. Gaza time (7:00 a.m. in Spain). Two hours later the delivery of the rest has been confirmed. The 20 are all Israeli men, 18 civilians and two military, according to authorities.
In this way, the handover of the live hostages (almost all of Israeli nationality) for Palestinian detainees and prisoners stipulated in the ceasefire agreement, which came into force in the Strip last Friday, is completed. The agreement also contemplates the delivery of the bodies of the deceased hostages, but so far the Red Cross has only received four of the 28 bodies, to which the families of the hostages have expressed their “shock and dismay.”
The delivery has been carried out within 72 hours from the beginning of the ceasefire by the Israeli army and the withdrawal of troops to the front line established in the agreement. “Before crossing into Israeli territory, a military protocol will be held in the Gaza Strip in his memory,” the Army said upon receiving the first bodies.
The Red Cross picked up the first hostages in Gaza City, in the north of the Strip, while the second handover occurred simultaneously in Deir al Balah (north) and Khan Yunis (south). “During two years of genocide and destruction, Netanyahu and his army failed to free their prisoners by force and were ultimately forced to submit to the conditions of the resistance,” Hamas boasted in a statement.
The Israeli Army and Government reported on Sunday that they were ready to receive those released and provide them with medical assistance immediately, before their reunion with their families and their transfer to three hospitals in southern Israel. The freed hostages have been reunited with their families. v
The return of the hostages was the main objective of President Donald Trump, who promoted the agreement based on a 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza. The agreement was announced on Thursday, after several days of indirect negotiations in Egypt, mediated by the host country, Qatar, Türkiye and the United States. However, the most difficult negotiation on rearmament and the future of Gaza remains. Last March, when it was time to negotiate the end of the war, Israel unilaterally broke the ceasefire with Hamas after two months.
In addition to the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and detainees, another point of the agreement is the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, after months of severe restrictions by Israel that caused famine among the population. On Sunday, hundreds of trucks with basic supplies began to circulate from Egypt, which still have to pass through Israeli border crossings and undergo inspections that slow down their arrival in Gaza. On Sunday, 173 trucks with humanitarian aid entered.
Source: www.eldiario.es
