JERUSALEM / ISTANBUL

The families of Israeli hostages in Gaza called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to reach an immediate swap agreement to return all captives from the Palestinian enclave.

The appeal comes shortly before the scheduled release of Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander, the last known living US hostage held in Gaza.

“Edan's return must be the beginning of a comprehensive agreement that brings home all the hostages,” the families said in a statement on X.

“The anticipated release of Edan Alexander proves how determined leadership can achieve results,” it said, in reference to US President Donald Trump.

Trump said Sunday that Hamas' forthcoming release of the soldier marks a "step taken in good faith" towards the US and regional mediators, signaling that it might be the first of the "final steps" needed to end Israel's war.

“These days represent a critical test for the (Israeli) government's commitment to its citizens,” families warned.

The statement called on the Israeli public to march from the Hostages Square in Tel Aviv to the US Embassy in Jerusalem to pile pressure on the government to reach a swap deal with the Palestinians.

Netanyahu’s office said earlier that Israel made no further promises for a ceasefire or the release of Palestinian prisoners from its jails in exchange for Alexander.

“Leadership must take this historic, worthy, and necessary action and end the nightmare that our nation has been enduring for 584 days. There is only one path forward – bring them home, then rebuild,” the statement said.

Israel estimates that 59 captives remain in Gaza, including 21 believed to be alive. Meanwhile, over 9,900 Palestinians are imprisoned in Israel, where rights groups report widespread torture, starvation, and medical neglect, resulting in several deaths.

Nearly 52,900 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for 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.