Hamas announces prisoner exchange deal will continue: Statement expected from Israel
Hamas has announced that it will continue to implement the prisoner exchange deal following commitments from mediating countries to remove obstacles raised by Israel regarding the agreement.
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Compiled by: Suat TEKİN - 12punto.com.tr
Following the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington last week, it was suggested that the ceasefire in Gaza could come to an end. In a statement, Hamas announced that the prisoner exchange deal would remain in effect following commitments from mediating countries.
According to claims in the Israeli press, Netanyahu moved to terminate the ceasefire agreement after meeting with Trump. It was alleged that Netanyahu, who appointed a delegation for the second round of ceasefire negotiations to be held in Doha, the capital of Qatar, specifically assigned a 'weak and ineffective' team to 'sabotage' the prisoner exchange and ceasefire talks.
On the other hand, Israel has not fulfilled the majority of its obligations under the ceasefire agreement. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which withdrew from the Netzarim Corridor as part of the agreement, continue to maintain a presence in some areas in the northern Gaza Strip. Conversely, Israel has not allowed the humanitarian aid it committed to permitting into Gaza to reach the Palestinians.
Furthermore, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz had previously threatened to restart the war on Gaza. Following these developments, Hamas released a statement indicating that the prisoner exchange would be 'postponed'.
WHY IS THE CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT IN JEOPARDY?
Tensions between Hamas and Israel rose after Trump declared that 'if all hostages are not released by Saturday, all hell will break loose.' Although Hamas officials sent messages that they were open to negotiations, they emphasized that the prisoner exchange had been postponed.
Red Cross officials, who mediated the prisoner exchange, requested that the remaining exchanges be conducted 'secretly' following the last exchange on February 8. While there was no negative response from Israel or Hamas to the Red Cross, no new statement has been made regarding how future prisoner exchanges will be conducted due to the ceasefire agreement being in jeopardy.
In a statement today (February 13), Hamas noted that the prisoner exchange deal is valid, as the countries mediating the agreement provided guarantees that they would resolve issues regarding Israel's failure to fulfill its responsibilities under the deal.
PRISONER EXCHANGE DEAL
The ongoing exchange process between Israel and Hamas continues within the framework of the ceasefire agreement that began on January 19. In the first round of the exchange, Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners, while Hamas released 3 Israeli hostages. In the second exchange, 200 Palestinians were released in return for 4 Israeli hostages, while in the third exchange, Hamas returned 8 hostages and Israel returned 110 Palestinians. Finally, in the 5th round of the exchange, Israel released 183 Palestinians in return for 3 hostages held by Hamas.
The ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement in Gaza went into effect on Sunday, January 19, at 12:15 PM (Turkish time). During the first 42 days of the three-phase ceasefire agreement, 33 Israeli hostages and over 1,900 Palestinians will regain their freedom.
In the first 5 rounds of the prisoner exchange, a total of 693 Palestinian prisoners regained their freedom, while 16 Israeli and 5 Thai hostages in Gaza were released.