Following the release of another group of hostages, negotiations continue to extend the ceasefire in the Gaza war, which ended on Thursday morning. The US said it would continue to work with Israel, Qatar and Egypt to see if the breaks could be extended further. Hostages could also be released on Wednesday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners – according to media reports, Israel has once again received a list of the names of held hostages from the terrorist organization Hamas. The G7 countries also called for an extension of the ceasefire.
On Tuesday evening, the Islamists released ten Israelis and two foreigners, including a woman of German nationality. She was the eleventh German-Israeli citizen to be released. A total of 81 hostages were released during the lull in fighting that began Friday. 61 of them are Israelis, some of whom have other citizenships, and 20 are foreigners. In return, Israel has so far released 180 Palestinian prisoners from its prisons.
The Gulf Emirate of Qatar, Egypt and the US are mediating in ceasefire talks. According to information from the German news agency, CIA director William Burns and the head of Israel’s foreign secret service Mossad, David Barnea, arrived in Doha on Tuesday to talk to Qatari Prime Minister Abdulrahman Al Thani about extending the pause. Qatar has good contacts with the organization. The Hamas leadership lives in the Gulf emirate.
Israel receives another hostage list for release
According to media reports, Hamas, as in previous days, again sent a list of hostages to be released on Wednesday. The Times of Israel, citing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, reported that affected families of the hostages had been notified, but did not give an exact number. It would be the sixth group of hostages released from Islamist violence during a break in fighting.
In exchange for the release of the twelve hostages, Israel released another group of Palestinians from Israeli prisons on Tuesday evening. All 30 prisoners have been released from various prisons, Israel’s prison authority said. According to this information, there were 15 female prisoners, some still young, and 15 male minors, the youngest of whom was 14 years old. The Palestinian prisoners released so far have been convicted of knife attacks on Israelis, arson and attacks with firebombs or stones.
The G7 countries want a longer ceasefire
Before the ceasefire expired, the Group of Seven Economically Strong Democracies (G7) spoke out on Wednesday evening in favor of an extension of the agreement and called for the release of all hostages. “If there are longer breaks beyond these two days, you know we are in favor of that and we will continue to work on it,” said John Kirby, communications director for the U.S. National Security Council. The US government wants all hostages released. The G7 foreign ministers of the US, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Britain and Canada called for the same.
Washington hopes more hostages with U.S. citizenship will be released, Kirby said. So far, those freed include a four-year-old American girl who witnessed the murder of her parents during the Hamas massacre. The government believes two more women with U.S. citizenship are being held. Another seven with U.S. passports are missing; it is not clear whether they are among the hostages.
Netanyahu calls for military destruction of Hamas
Despite the ongoing ceasefire, Netanyahu reiterated the goal of Hamas’s military destruction. He did not say how long the ceasefire might last. “We have agreed that the women and children and the foreign hostages will be released first. Then we will continue to fight,” Netanyahu told Welt TV in an interview published on Tuesday, conducted in English and translated into German by Welt TV.
Hamas has committed the worst killings and will do so again, the conservative head of government said. “We have no choice but to destroy Hamas,” he said. Israel will continue to do everything possible to protect civilians in the Gaza Strip as much as possible. However, according to Hamas, almost 15,000 people have been killed there and around 36,000 have been injured. Another 7,000 residents of the coastal strip are missing.
Hamas took Israeli teenagers hostage with a dog
There was a small surprise during the hostage situation on Tuesday: one of the freed people had her dog Bella with her during the 52 days of captivity. Netanyahu’s office released a photo of the 17-year-old back in Israel with her mother, who was also released, and her shih tzu dog Bella. The young woman was abducted to the Gaza Strip along with other family members and kept the dog with her.
What will be important on Wednesday
Israel is awaiting the release of more hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The World Security Council, chaired by China, plans to meet in New York in the afternoon German time. At the end of his Middle East trip, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier speaks with the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani about the conflict in the Middle East and the release of hostages. The Islamic organization Hamas called for global protests on Wednesday in solidarity with the people of the Gaza Strip. (sda/dpa)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
