A senior Hamas official stated on Wednesday that Hamas doesn’t have 40 dwelling hostages in Gaza who meet the factors for an alternate underneath a proposed cease-fire settlement with Israel being negotiated.
A senior Israeli official stated Israel had been relayed Hamas’s declare, and the senior Hamas official stated that the group had knowledgeable mediators facilitating the negotiations. The Israeli official and the Hamas official requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the negotiations.
The assertion raised fears that extra hostages could also be lifeless than beforehand believed and got here as talks between Hamas and Israel have stalled amid disagreements over the permanency of a cease-fire, the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza and different points.
Worldwide negotiators have proposed an preliminary six-week cease-fire throughout which Hamas would launch a primary group of 40 hostages — together with ladies, older folks, unwell hostages and 5 feminine Israeli troopers — in alternate for tons of of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, in addition to different calls for.
Israeli officers consider there are about 130 hostages remaining in Gaza, and Israeli intelligence officers have concluded that not less than 30 of these have died in captivity.
It was not instantly clear if Israel would now demand that younger males and troopers be included among the many first 40 launched captives. These hostages had been anticipated to have to attend for a later section of the deal.
The event got here days after the Israeli army stated it had recovered the physique of an Israeli hostage who, like round 240 others, was kidnapped throughout the Hamas-led Oct. 7 assault.
The Israeli authorities and Hamas held a quick cease-fire in Gaza in November to permit for the discharge of round 100 hostages captured throughout the assault in alternate for the discharge of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, providing a respite from a devastating bombing marketing campaign.
