Abu Obeida: Hamas to release three Israeli captives Saturday

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
Today 13:32

The al-Qassam Brigades military spokesperson has revealed the names of the three captives to be released.

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The al-Qassam Brigades spokesperson Abu Obeida in an undated photo (Social media)

The al-Qassam Brigades military spokesperson Abu Obeida confirmed on Friday that the group will release three Israeli captives on Saturday, in the fourth round of the first phase of the Al Aqsa Flood prisoner exchange deal.

The Prisoners' Information Office later confirmed that nine Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and 81 with long-term sentences will be released tomorrow in the fourth round.

In a statement posted to the social media platform Telegram, Abu Obeida named the captives being released: Ofer Calderon, Keith Siegel, and Yarden Bibas.

This comes shortly after the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas Resistance movement, announced Thursday the martyrdom of the faction's Commander-in-Chief Mohammad "Abu Khaled" Deif, alongside several other senior commanders, as part of Operation Al Aqsa Flood.

Speaking in a video published through al-Qassam's official military media channels, spokesperson Abu Obeida said the announcement came "after completing all necessary procedures and addressing all security concerns imposed by the conditions of battle and the field, and after conducting the necessary verifications and taking all relevant measures."

"We announce to our great people, our nation, and all supporters of freedom and resistance around the world the martyrdom of a group of senior fighters and heroic commanders from the General Military Council of the al-Qassam Brigades," he declared.

Negotiations for the second phase of the prisoner exchange deal and ceasefire are expected to begin next Monday, according to the Israeli website Walla.

For more on the martyred leader, read: Who is Mohammad Deif, the Resistance leader, bane of 'Israel'?

Gaza Resistance releases three Israeli captives in handover to ICRC

The Palestinian Resistance released, on Thursday, three Israeli captives in the third round of the first phase of the Al-Aqsa Flood prisoner exchange deal, in addition to five Thai nationals.

Agam Berger, Arbel Yehud, and Gadi Mozes were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Thai nationals Thenna Pongsak, Sathian Suwannakham, Sriaoun Watchara, Seathao Bannawat, and Rumnao Surasak were also released as part of the exchange process.

The Israeli occupation military later confirmed that the released Israeli captives were received by the Israeli army and the Shin Bet in the designated area in the Gaza Strip.

Later, after an abrupt pause and deliberate stalling, Israeli occupation authorities released 110 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in exchange for the three Israeli captives.

Since the start of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement between "Israel" and Hamas on January 19, seven Israeli women have been released in exchange for 290 Palestinian prisoners and detainees from Israeli prisons.

On January 20, during the first round of exchanges—carried out on the first day of the agreement’s implementation—the Palestinian Resistance handed over three Israeli female captives in exchange for the release of 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including women and children, from Israeli prisons.

Similarly, on January 25, the occupation released 200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in the second round of the exchange process, as announced by the Israeli Prison Service.

El-Nounou: Hamas insisted on ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza

The media advisor to the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Taher El-Nounou, reaffirmed that the movement insisted during the ceasefire and prisoner exchange negotiations on key conditions, such as a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of the Israeli military from the Gaza Strip.

Furthermore, Hamas insisted on the return of forcibly displaced Palestinians to their homes and rejected the inclusion of ambiguous terms like "truce" and "redeployment" of Israeli forces, as per the media advisor.

In an interview for Russian news agency RIA Novosti, El-Nounou criticized "Israel’s" attempts to frame the deal as a mere "truce", stating, "Israel was writing 'truce' on all papers, not a ceasefire, but we insisted on a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire."

He elaborated that Israeli negotiators proposed "redeployment", warning that using the word "withdrawal" could destabilize Netanyahu’s government.

The media advisor also highlighted other terms Hamas insisted on, including the provision for "reconstruction with compensation," though the method for such compensation was left unspecified. Additionally, Hamas insisted on the inclusion of the "return of the displaced" rather than merely reopening the Netzarim Corridor.

Furthermore, El-Nounou emphasized the need to facilitate the evacuation of both civilian and military casualties from Gaza for medical treatment, underscoring the humanitarian aspect of the ceasefire agreement.