Israel and Hamas to hold a large-scale exchange: 369 Palestinians for three hostages

On Saturday, February 15, as part of a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad will release three hostages in exchange for 369 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. This was reported by Al Jazeera, according to UNN.

Details

According to Palestinian groups, the released hostages include American-Israeli Sagui Dekel-Chen, Russian-Israeli Alexander (Sasha) Trufanov, and Argentine-Israeli Yair Horn.

The names of the Palestinian prisoners to be released have not yet been made public. At the same time, Israeli media reports that 333 Palestinians arrested in Gaza will return to the enclave, 10 people will be released in the occupied West Bank, one in occupied East Jerusalem, and 25 more will be sent either to Gaza or Egypt.

The news of the exchange caused optimism among Gaza residents, said Al Jazeera journalist Hani Mahmoud from Rafah. However, he said, in recent days, anxiety and concern have prevailed among the people.

Al Jazeera journalist Noor Odeh from Amman, Jordan, noted that the release of the three hostages gives hope to other Israeli families whose relatives still remain in Gaza.

For now, the ceasefire remains in place, and there is some hope. And Palestinian families are waiting for the list of prisoners to find out who will be released and who they will see tomorrow,

She added that this is another relief for the mediators, while the Israeli government has so far refrained from commenting.

Since the beginning of the ceasefire on January 19, Hamas has already released 21 hostages, including 16 Israelis.

After Saturday's exchange, the ceasefire is expected to enter its second phase on March 1. During this period, Israeli soldiers may be released, but details have not yet been agreed upon.

Previously

This week, Hamas threatened to postpone the release of hostages, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire. In particular, Tel Aviv allegedly failed to ensure the access of humanitarian supplies to Gaza, including tents and temporary shelters.

At the same time, Israel, with the support of U.S. President Donald Trump, said it would resume hostilities if the hostages were not released as agreed. The Israeli side did not respond to Hamas' statement.

Hamas reported that it had held talks with Egyptian officials in Cairo and was in contact with the Prime Minister of Qatar to bring more tents, medical supplies, fuel and heavy equipment to Gaza to clear the rubble. The group said that the mediators promised to remove all obstacles to this.