The Israeli prison service has officially acknowledged the release of an additional 30 Palestinians as part of the ongoing humanitarian truce. This truce, initially set to expire on Friday, was extended for an additional 24 hours. The BBC reported that the identities of the freed Palestinians have been withheld.
Notably, there has been no immediate confirmation of the prisoners' release from Hamas or its affiliated media channels. According to the terms outlined in the Israel-Hamas truce, Israel is obligated to release three Palestinians for every Israeli hostage set free.
Amid a tense negotiation to extend the truce into its seventh day, the Israeli government ultimately accepted a proposal for Hamas to release eight new Israeli hostages on Thursday. Informal sources indicated that Israel agreed to include two Israeli-Russian hostages, released on Wednesday, as part of Thursday's release.
In a statement, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed the government's commitment to the return of all hostages and missing individuals, welcoming the six citizens who had recently returned to Israeli territory.
Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari reiterated the terms of the truce extension, specifying that Israel would release 30 Palestinians from its prisons in exchange for the release of 10 hostages in Gaza. This count includes the two Israeli-Russian nationals released on Wednesday as part of the hostage deal.
While the truce was renewed for the seventh day at the last minute, it is scheduled to expire again at approximately 7 a.m. local time on Friday. The military wing of Hamas is urging its forces to maintain "high combat readiness" in case the ceasefire is not extended.
This extension marks the second continuation of the initial four-day truce that commenced on November 24, with a two-day extension granted on Tuesday. Since the initiation of the pause, a total of 240 Palestinians, 86 Israelis, and 24 foreign nationals have reportedly been released.
(With Agency Inputs)
ALSO READ | Netanyahu Assures Blinken: 'Nothing will stop us from crushing Hamas'
ALSO READ | Blinken Visits Israel, Focusing on Urging Truce Ceasefire Extension
