Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said that he would not move forward with the Gaza ceasefire agreement unless Iran-backed terror group Hamas shares the list of 33 hostages who will be released from Palestine.
“We will not move forward with the agreement until we receive the list of hostages who will be released, as agreed. Israel will not tolerate violations of the agreement. The sole responsibility lies with Hamas,” Netanyahu said in a post on X.
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Netanyahu’s warning came a day ahead of the ceasefire deal with Hamas that involves releasing Israeli hostages from the Gaza Strip, and the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) halting new attacks in the enclave.
According to news agency Reuters, 33 of the 98 remaining Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas are expected to be freed in this phase of the ceasefire deal mediated by Qatar. In exchange, Israel will also free around 2,000 Palestinians who are currently lodged in multiple prisons.
The deal will go into effect on Sunday (January 19) at 8.30 am local time (0630 GMT), mediator Qatar announced earlier in the day.
The ceasefire agreement will put an end to the 15-month-long war between Israel and Hamas, the governing authority in Gaza. The conflict has caused widespread devastation in the Gaza Strip, claiming the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians, and contributed to instability in the Middle East.
This phase of the ceasefire deal will last for 42 days and discussions over the second phase are expected to begin in two weeks.
Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes continued on Saturday, and Gaza’s Health Ministry said 23 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours.
The Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack killed around 1,200 Israelis and left some 250 others captive. Israel responded to the attack with an offensive that has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and militants but say women and children make up more than half the dead.