TEL AVIV, Israel- Relatives of hostages still being held by the Gaza military called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday to ensure that all remaining prisoners are freed, while urging US President Donald Trump to continue pressing for their release.
As the fragile six-week truce between Israel and Hamas enters its sixth day, Israelis are eagerly awaiting the names of the next four hostages to be freed among the more than 90 still held in Gaza.
On the Palestinian border, residents of the central and southern Gaza Strip who hope to return to the remnants of their homes in the occupied north face an agonizing wait.
Israel believes that about a third, or about a half, of the more than 90 hostages in Gaza have died. Hamas has not released specific information on how many hostages are still alive or the names of those who died.
“Dear President Trump, first of all we want to thank you for the good times we have had this week. But we want to tell you that we still have 94 hostages, we need them all at home,” said Ayelet Samerano, whose son Yonatan Samerano is among those still in custody. “Please don’t stop. Please continue to press and do everything so that all 94 hostages return home as soon as possible. “
In the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, 33 hostages are expected to be released gradually in exchange for the return of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
The first three Israeli hostages were released in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners on Sunday, the first day of a ceasefire that has halted the 15-month war that has devastated Gaza. More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and large areas of the area have been destroyed.
According to this agreement, on Friday Hamas will announce the names of the next four hostages who will be released on Saturday, after which Israel will release a list of Palestinian prisoners.
The hostages were among about 250 men, women and children kidnapped by terrorists who stormed the border into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people in an attack that sparked the war in Gaza. About 100 were released during a ceasefire in November that year, while the bodies of nearly thirty hostages were found in Gaza and eight hostages were rescued by the military.
“I’m calling on the Prime Minister and the negotiating team — you’re doing a great job — do whatever it takes to bring everyone back, to the last hostage,” Samerano said. “Please ensure that the second phase of the agreement is agreed upon before ending the existing sentence. We cannot continue to live in uncertainty. All the captives must return, and not one of them has time.”
The 33 to be released in the first phase will include women, children, the sick and those over 50 – almost all civilians, although the agreement obliges Hamas to release all living female soldiers in phase 1. Hamas will release the living hostages first, but can release other corpses if they do not have enough living hostages in this category. Male soldiers are not expected to be discharged in the first phase.
“This week we were moved to look at pictures of mothers hugging their daughters, but our hearts are broken when we think that my son Nimrod and other men are left behind, and every day they are there it puts their lives at risk,” said Vicky Cohen. his son Nimrodi Cohen is among the captives. “The worry that the agreement will not be fully implemented hurts us all. All senior officials say that stopping the deal means a death sentence for those left behind.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Palestinians in Gaza will have more freedom of movement from north to south of the enclave. Residents of the south will be allowed to take the coastal road to northern Gaza from Saturday, when Israeli forces are expected to withdraw from the main route and Hamas will release the next four Israeli hostages.
Those in other parts of the region were seized by a ceasefire this week to meet with family members who were scattered, picking through the rubble and trying to salvage what was left of their homes and belongings. But those displaced from the north had to wait.
“The first thing I’m going to do, I’m going to be the filth of the land I was born and raised in,” said Nadia Al-Debs, one of the many people gathered in temporary tents in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah as she prepares to go home to Gaza City the next day. “We will return so that my children can see their father.
Nafouz al-Rabai, another woman who was evicted from Deir al-Balah from al-Shati, on the Gaza City coast, said the day she will go home will be “a day of happiness for us.”
Returning evokes bitter feelings. Al-Rabai admitted it will be painful to absorb the scale of the damage to the home and refugee camp in the city he knew and loved. “God knows if I will find (my house) standing or not,” he said. “It’s a terrible life.”
-Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip.
Source link
