Under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, the release of 48 hostages could begin on Monday morning, with 20 alive and 28 dead being handed over. The Israeli military completed its initial withdrawal from Gaza by Friday afternoon, giving Hamas 72 hours to do so.
Meanwhile, Hamas has refused to attend the official signing ceremony (second phase) of the Gaza peace summit in Egypt on Monday. Senior Hamas leader Hossam Badran said he disagrees with some points of US President Donald Trump’s plan.
Badran said: “Expelling Palestinians (whether Hamas members or not) from their land is absurd.” He described the negotiations for the second phase of the agreement as complicated and difficult. Another Hamas official said that disarmament (laying down arms) is completely impossible, even if they give up power in Gaza.
Israel will release about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. According to the Times of Israel, the International Committee of the Red Cross will oversee the exchange. The report said that if conditions remain favorable, the release could begin Sunday night.
Meanwhile, US special envoy Steve Witkoff met with the families of the hostages on Saturday. He said that some of the bodies may be very difficult to find. This has caused great concern among the families.
According to a CNN report, Israel knew in advance that the bodies of 7 to 15 hostages would not be found, although officials have not confirmed this publicly.
