Hamas has handed over seven surviving Israeli hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), marking the first stage of a major hostage-prisoner exchange under a newly brokered Gaza ceasefire deal.
The Israeli military confirmed that a Red Cross convoy had entered northern Gaza on Monday to collect the hostages, in line with the terms of the agreement. The deal, mediated by the United States, Egypt, and Qatar, aims to bring an end to the devastating conflict that erupted following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Under the initial phase of the agreement, Hamas will release 47 Israeli hostages — both living and deceased — in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,700 Gazans detained by Israel since the war began. The group is also expected to return the remains of an Israeli soldier killed during the 2014 Gaza war.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it expects all 20 living hostages to be released to the Red Cross “early Monday morning” before Israel begins freeing prisoners. “The releases will occur once confirmation is received that all of our hostages have crossed back into Israel,” a spokesperson said.
Gaza Peace Summit
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump departed Washington on Monday for Israel and Egypt, where he will co-host a high-level Gaza peace summit with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Sharm El-Sheikh.
According to Egypt’s presidency, the summit will bring together leaders from over 20 countries, including UN Secretary-General António Guterres, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The gathering aims “to end the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance peace efforts in the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional stability,” the Egyptian presidency said.
A diplomatic source told AFP that mediators from the U.S., Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey are expected to sign a “guarantee document” to solidify the ceasefire. However, neither Israel nor Hamas will attend the summit, with both sides confirming they will not send representatives.
Hamas Post-War Role
A Hamas source close to the group’s negotiating committee told AFP that the movement has “relinquished control of the Strip” but would remain “a fundamental part of the Palestinian fabric.”
“Hamas agrees to a long-term truce, and for its weapons not to be used at all during this period, except in the event of an Israeli attack,” the source said. However, another official insisted that full disarmament was “out of the question.”
Aid Arrives in Gaza
As the ceasefire takes effect, more than 200 trucks carrying humanitarian aid — including fuel and cooking gas — crossed into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border point on Sunday.
AFP correspondents reported that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians returned to Gaza City over the weekend, with the enclave’s civil defence agency estimating that more than 500,000 people had returned by Saturday evening.
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