Hamas to postpone hostage release over Israeli 'violations' of Gaza ceasefire agreement

ISTANBUL

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian group Hamas, announced on Monday the postponement of the scheduled release of Israeli hostages set for Saturday until further notice, citing Israel's “violations” of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

“Over the past three weeks, the resistance leadership has monitored the enemy’s (Israeli) violations and its failure to adhere to the terms of the agreement, including delaying the return of displaced people to northern Gaza, targeting them with shelling and gunfire across various areas of the Strip, and preventing the entry of humanitarian aid in all its forms as per the agreement, while the resistance has fully upheld its commitments,” said spokesperson Abu Obaida in a statement on Telegram.

“Accordingly, the release of the Zionist (Israeli) prisoners, which was scheduled for the coming Saturday, will be postponed until further notice, pending the occupation’s full compliance with the agreement and compensation for the past weeks' entitlements retroactively,” he added.

The spokesperson said the group remained committed to the agreement "as long as” Israel “abides by its terms.”

Following this announcement, Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the army to prepare at the “highest level of alert” for any possible scenario in Gaza.

Katz said the Hamas announcement constitutes an “outright violation” of the truce agreement, adding: “I instructed the Israeli army to prepare at the highest level of alert for any possible scenario in Gaza.”

Meanwhile, the families of Israeli prisoners held in Gaza urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government not to obstruct the prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.

“We have urgently requested assistance from the mediating countries (Egypt, Qatar, and the US) to help restore and implement the existing deal effectively,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

The forum called on the government to refrain from any actions that could jeopardize the deal and to remain committed to securing the return of 76 Israeli captives.

The three-phase ceasefire deal has been in place in Gaza since Jan. 19, halting Israel’s genocidal war that has killed more than 48,000 people and left the enclave in ruins.

In the first phase of truce, which runs until early March, 33 Israeli hostages are to be released in exchange for a number of Palestinian prisoners. The sixth Israeli-Hamas swap was scheduled this week.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.