Hamas has agreed “in principle” to bring forward the release of four hostage bodies scheduled to be returned to Israel on Thursday, an Israeli official told Channel 12 News on Tuesday.
The remains were initially scheduled to be released only later this week in accordance with the terms of the terrorist group’s ceasefire agreement with Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that he had temporarily paused the release of some 600 Palestinian prisoners “in light of Hamas’s repeated violations [of the ceasefire], including the ceremonies that humiliate our hostages and the cynical exploitation of our hostages for propaganda purposes.”
Israel was set to free the prisoners on Saturday, including 50 serving life sentences, 60 serving long terms, and 47 who were rearrested after being released as part of the 2011 swap for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes described Netanyahu’s decision as an “appropriate response” to Hamas’s actions, according to Reuters.
Hughes stressed that U.S. President Donald Trump was ready to back Jerusalem in “whatever course of action it chooses regarding Hamas.”
On Monday night, Channel 12 News reported that the bodies of two slain hostages would be transferred to Egyptian territory “within 24 hours” in exchange for the release of 302 jailed Palestinian terrorists.
According to the report, Hamas agreed to release the bodies of two more deceased Israeli captives later in exchange for the remaining prisoners.
The return this week of the remains of four hostages would be the final exchange of Phase 1 of the ceasefire, which took effect on Jan. 19 and is due to end on March 1.
