By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY (Associated Press)
JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas militants on Sunday freed 17 extra hostages, together with 14 Israelis, in a 3rd set of releases beneath a cease-fire deal.
Red Cross representatives transferred the hostages out of Gaza late Sunday. Some had been handed over on to Israel, whereas others left by means of Egypt.
The military mentioned one of many hostages was airlifted on to an Israeli hospital.
Israel was to free 39 Palestinian prisoners later Sunday as a part of the deal.
It was the third consecutive day during which Hamas launched Israeli hostages it has been holding in Gaza in trade for Palestinian prisoners.
A fourth trade is anticipated to happen on Monday – the final day of the four-day cease-fire between the enemies. A complete of fifty hostages and 150 Palestinian prisoners are to be freed.
Israel declared struggle on Hamas after the Islamic militant group carried out a cross-border assault on Oct. 7 that killed some 1,200 folks and took 240 folks hostage. An Israeli offensive in Gaza has left over 13,300 folks useless, in keeping with well being authorities within the Hamas-run territory.
International mediators led by the U.S. and Qatar try to increase the cease-fire.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows under.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas seemed to be again on observe Sunday after the discharge of a second group of militant-held hostages and Palestinians from Israeli prisons, and Egypt mentioned it had obtained new lists for an anticipated third launch.
In a separate growth, Hamas introduced that certainly one of its prime commanders had been killed, with out saying when or how. Israel’s army confirmed it.
The second trade was delayed for hours Saturday after Hamas accused Israel of violating the settlement, which has introduced the primary important pause in seven weeks of struggle marked by the deadliest Israeli-Palestinian violence in many years and huge destruction and displacement throughout the Gaza Strip. Hamas later launched 13 Israelis and 4 Thais, whereas Israel freed 39 Palestinian prisoners.
Diaa Rashwan, chair of the Egyptian State Information Services, mentioned Egypt had obtained an inventory of 13 hostages that Hamas will launch Sunday, and one other checklist of 39 Palestinians that Israel is anticipated to free.
White House nationwide safety adviser Jake Sullivan informed NBC’s “Meet the Press” that the U.S. had “reason to believe” that an American hostage can be launched Sunday and mentioned there have been hopes it might be Abigail Edan, the 4-year-old woman who misplaced her mother and father within the Hamas assault on Oct. 7. Sullivan additionally mentioned that U.S. President Joe Biden would converse with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later Sunday.
Separately, Hamas mentioned it had launched one of many Russian hostages it was holding, “in response to the efforts of Russian President Vladimir Putin” and as a present of appreciation for Moscow’s place on the struggle. Israeli military radio had reported that it was an Israeli-Russian twin nationwide.
Hamas and different militant teams seized round 240 folks through the rampage throughout southern Israel that ignited the struggle. Forty-four have been launched, one was freed by Israeli forces and two had been discovered useless inside Gaza.
Pressure from hostages’ households has sharpened the dilemma dealing with Israel’s leaders, who search to remove Hamas as a army and governing energy whereas returning all of the captives.
The struggle has claimed the lives of greater than 1,200 Israelis, principally civilians killed by Hamas within the preliminary assault. More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed, roughly two thirds of them girls and minors, in keeping with the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza.
The four-day cease-fire, which started Friday, was brokered by Qatar and Egypt and the United States. Hamas will launch not less than 50 Israeli hostages, and Israel will free 150 Palestinian prisoners. All are girls and minors.
Israel has mentioned the truce might be prolonged by an additional day for each extra 10 hostages freed, however has vowed to rapidly resume its offensive as soon as it ends. Sullivan mentioned the U.S. is working “with all sides on the possibility that this deal gets extended to additional hostages beyond the initial 50.”
Hamas introduced the dying of Ahmed al-Ghandour, who was in control of northern Gaza and a member of its prime army council. He is the highest-ranking militant recognized to have been killed within the combating.
Al-Ghandour, believed to have been round 56 years outdated, had survived not less than three Israeli makes an attempt on his life and was concerned in a cross-border assault in 2006 during which Palestinian militants captured an Israeli soldier, in keeping with the Counter Extremism Project, an advocacy group primarily based in Washington.
Hamas mentioned that he was killed together with three different senior militants, together with Ayman Siam, who Israel says was in control of Hamas’ rocket-firing unit. The Israeli army talked about each males in a Nov. 16 assertion, saying it had focused an underground complicated the place Hamas leaders had been hiding.
The Israeli army claims to have killed 1000’s of militants, with out offering proof, together with a number of mid-ranking commanders it has recognized by identify.
The pause has given some respite to Gaza’s 2.3 million folks, nonetheless reeling from relentless Israeli bombardment that has pushed three-quarters of the inhabitants from their houses and leveled residential areas. Rocket hearth from Gaza militants into Israel additionally went silent.
War-weary Palestinians in northern Gaza, the place the offensive has centered, returned to the streets. Entire metropolis blocks in and round Gaza City have been gutted by airstrikes that hollowed out buildings and left drifts of rubble.
In southern Gaza, the place a whole bunch of 1000’s of individuals from the north have sought refuge, residents lined up exterior fuel stations, hoping to fill up on gasoline. Palestinians who’ve tried to return to the north to see if their houses are intact have been turned again by Israeli troops.
“Many are desperate to return to their homes, but they open fire on anyone approaching from the south,” mentioned Rami Hazarein, who fled from Gaza City final month.
The Israeli army has ordered Palestinians to not return to the north or strategy inside a kilometer (round a half-mile) of the border fence. The Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service mentioned that Israeli forces opened hearth Sunday on two farmers in central Gaza, killing one and wounding the opposite. It didn’t present additional particulars. An Israeli army spokesperson mentioned they weren’t conscious of the incident.
The United Nations mentioned the truce has made it doable to scale up the supply of meals, water, and medication to the most important quantity for the reason that begin of the struggle, although it nonetheless hasn’t reached prewar ranges. It was in a position to ship gasoline for the primary time for the reason that struggle started, and to achieve areas within the north for the primary time in a month.
The Israeli hostages freed on Saturday included seven kids and 6 girls, ranging in age from 3 to 67. Most had been from Kibbutz Be’eri, a neighborhood that Hamas militants ravaged throughout their Oct. 7 assault.
The freed hostages have principally stayed out of the general public eye. Hospitals mentioned their bodily situation has been good, other than one who was shot through the assault and required surgical procedure. Little is publicly recognized concerning the situations of their captivity.
Eyal Nouri, the nephew of Adina Moshe, 72, who was freed on Friday, mentioned his aunt “had to adjust to the sunlight” as a result of she had been in full darkness for weeks.
The launched Palestinians included not less than two girls who had been given lengthy sentences after being convicted by Israeli courts of violent assaults. Many Palestinians view prisoners held by Israel, together with these implicated in assaults, as heroes resisting occupation, and have celebrated their launch.
The struggle in Gaza has been accompanied by a surge in violence within the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Palestinian well being authorities mentioned Sunday that 5 Palestinians had been killed in an Israeli army raid within the northern West Bank metropolis of Jenin that started the day earlier than.
The Israeli military has performed frequent army raids and arrested a whole bunch of Palestinians for the reason that begin of the struggle, principally folks it suspects of being Hamas members.
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Samy Magdy reported from Cairo. Isabel DeBre in Jerusalem, and Tia Goldenberg in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.
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Full AP protection at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
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