Hamas has said it wants to release a dual Israeli-American citizen from custody. The Islamic organization said it had agreed to a proposal from mediators. The American soldier is identified as Edan Alexander.
In addition to the American hostage, four dead hostages, who are also said to have dual citizenship, will also be handed over. The terrorist organization did not disclose the nationalities of the four dead individuals. It was also unclear when the release and handover of the bodies would take place.
According to Israeli information, Islamists in the Gaza Strip still have 24 hostages and 35 bodies of the kidnapped. A total of five of them also have American citizenship - only one of them, a young man, is still alive, according to Israeli sources, writes A2 CNN.
During the first phase of the ceasefire, which ended two weeks ago, Hamas released 25 live hostages and the remains of eight killed hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody. Negotiations for a possible second phase of the ceasefire are currently underway in Doha.
Fighting in Gaza has been halted since January 19 under the first phase of a three-phase ceasefire deal. But when the first phase ended on March 2, the sides failed to agree on the start of the second phase. Israel offered to extend the first phase, while Hamas said it would resume the hostage release only in the second phase, during which Israel is required to discuss a troop withdrawal and a permanent end to the war, Hamas's main demands.
Israel blocked all supply trucks from entering Gaza on March 2 as the conflict escalated, with Hamas calling on Egyptian and Qatari mediators to intervene. (A2 Televizion)
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