A rally marking 500 days since the hostages were kidnapped to the Gaza Strip, at “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv, February 17, 2025. (Photo: Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Hamas will release six living Israeli hostages this Saturday, according to statements by Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya and Israeli officials on Tuesday.
In a short speech, al-Hayya accused Israel of delaying the talks over a second stage of the deal while affirming his group’s willingness to enter Phase 2, which includes an end of the war.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office stated: “Understandings have been reached in the Cairo negotiations according to which six living first-stage hostages will be released on Saturday.”
“This Thursday, four deceased hostages will be returned to Israel. Pursuant to the agreement, four additional deceased hostages are due to be returned to Israel next week,” the PMO said.
Earlier Tuesday, a political source briefed media outlets that “Prime Minister Netanyahu is making great efforts to release all six remaining living hostages in Phase A, as well as four non-living hostages.”
In return, Israel would allow “caravans and heavy equipment into the Gaza Strip after strict inspection,” as per the terms of the agreement, the source added. “As part of the negotiations, and subject to Hamas’s compliance with the agreement, Israel will begin to allow this in a controlled and graduated manner.”
Out of the original 33 hostages slated for release during the first phase of the ceasefire, 14 remain in captivity, of whom eight are believed to be dead.
In recent days, both Israel and Hamas have shown interest to move up and combine the last two rounds of hostage releases of the first phase, while talks over the details of a possible second phase seem stuck at the moment.
A Hamas official told Ynet News that “There is a negotiation, and it depends on the price Israel is willing to pay.”
He added that Hamas’s main demands are that Israel adhere to the “humanitarian protocol provisions,” and commit to carrying out the second phase, which includes a final end to the war and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
At the time of publication, there was no indication Israel had agreed to the latter condition.
Other reports suggested that Hamas wants to ensure the release of its prisoners, particularly those who were released under the 2011 Shalit Deal but have since been rearrested after returning to terror.
“Hamas feared that the agreement will not last until day 42 when these 47 prisoners were supposed to be release, because Israel will blow it up,” an Israeli official told Axios.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Tuesday reiterated that Israel would not accept “the continued presence of Hamas or other terrorist organizations in Gaza.”
“Hamas is trying to adopt the ‘Hezbollah model’ in Gaza – meaning Hamas will transfer civilian rule to the Palestinian Authority or another body but will remain the dominant military force and continue the war against Israel. We will not accept this. We demand the complete demilitarization of Gaza,” Sa’ar said Tuesday.
While the negotiations over the end of the first phase appear to be advancing rapidly, Israel’s security cabinet on Monday failed to reach a conclusion regarding the talks over Phase 2, and therefore, didn’t grant the negotiating team in Cairo a clear mandate for the talks, according to Israeli media.
Briefing the media on Tuesday, Sa’ar said Israel “will begin negotiations,” using the future tense.
He added that “Israel is committed to ensuring the release of all hostages and to all the war objectives we decided on in the Cabinet,” which would include the destruction of Hamas and contradict the terms of the second phase.
This was confirmed by Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari, who said that the official negotiations over the deal’s second phase have yet to begin. He added that Qatar and its mediation partners, Egypt and the U.S., are committed to supporting efforts to start the talks.
Al-Ansari added emphasized that there are “daily contacts” with all parties and confirmed that delegations have arrived in Doha in recent days.
Regarding this week’s exchanges, he said there was “positive mobilization” by both sides but noted that “details regarding this will be published in due course, as always.”
In addition to the possible release of up to six living hostages, reports on Monday suggested Israel is expecting Hamas to give up between four and six bodies of killed hostages on Thursday.
According to Channel 12 News, this was part of a secret appendix to the original deal and not an additional concession by Hamas.
The names of the deceased hostages will be sent to Israel on Thursday morning, possibly earlier.
The bodies will be handed over to IDF ambulances who will take them directly to the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute for immediate identification. Then, their families will be informed, before the names will be released to the public.
