Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Thursday it was ready to begin talks on the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire after several hundred Palestinians were released from Israeli jails overnight in exchange for the bodies of four Israeli hostages.
It was the final exchange of the six-week first phase of a ceasefire in Gaza that came into effect on January 19.
Israel said on Thursday morning that three of the hostages whose bodies it had received overnight had been murdered in captivity and the fourth had been killed on the day of the October 2023 Hamas raid into Israel that precipitated the war.
There was no immediate response from Hamas to the allegation the hostages had been killed in captivity. The group has previously denied killing hostages and said some had died as a result of Israeli bombardment.
Talks Yet To Start
Talks have yet to begin on a second phase of the ceasefire, meant to lead ultimately to a permanent end to the war which has destroyed much of the enclave.
Israel’s government faces public pressure to stick to the ceasefire to free remaining hostages, while some within the right-wing government want to return to war to fulfil their objective of eradicating Hamas.
The dire condition of hostages handed over in recent weeks, including some who appeared emaciated and others including a baby that Israel says were murdered, have intensified public fury in Israel, potentially impacting talks to extend the truce.
Hamas said on Thursday the only way remaining hostages in Gaza would be freed is through commitment to the ceasefire.
“We renew our full commitment to the ceasefire agreement, and confirm our readiness to enter into negotiations for the second phase of the agreement,” the group said in a statement.
Remaining Hostages’ Fate Uncertain
There are 54 hostages still held in Gaza. Israeli authorities believe fewer than half are still alive.
Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen told public broadcaster Kan that Israel demanded that the military stay the Philadelphi Corridor, which runs the length of Gaza’s southern border with Egypt.
Israeli troops are supposed to start withdrawing from the Gaza-Egypt border area on Saturday, when the first phase of the ceasefire is set to end.
Israel and Hamas were supposed to start negotiations over the second phase of the agreement on the 16th day of the ceasefire but there has been little indication of progress.
Israel In Stronger Position
Cohen said Israel was in a stronger position to negotiate now than it was on the eve of the ceasefire because it has full backing from the U.S. administration of President Donald Trump, which this month began shipping heavy bombs.
Egyptian mediators on Wednesday secured the handover of the bodies of the final four hostages in the deal’s first phase, in return for 620 Palestinians either detained by Israeli forces in Gaza or jailed in Israel. Israel had earlier refused to release prisoners on Saturday after Hamas handed over six hostages in a staged ceremony.
Hamas had been displaying living hostages and coffins holding hostage remains on stage in front of crowds in Gaza before handing them over, to criticism including from the United Nations. The final handover did not include such a ceremony.
President Isaac Herzog in a post on X confirmed the bodies received overnight were those of Tsachi Idan, Itzhak Elgarat, Ohad Yahalomi and Shlomo Mantzur, all abducted during the October 7, 2023 attack from their kibbutz homes near Gaza.
(With inputs from Reuters)
