Hamas has yet to submit the list of hostages set for release on Saturday, as required under the cease-fire agreement, an Israeli official said Friday.
The official warned that failure to transfer the names to mediators would be considered a serious violation of the deal but did not specify potential consequences.
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Israeli hostages held by Hamas and named in the first phase of the cease-fire and hostage release deal
Israel has pressed mediators to push for the release of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, in addition to the three men expected to be freed under the agreement. The Bibas family was abducted during the October 7 Hamas attack, and in November 2023, Hamas claimed the mother and her children had died in captivity—a claim Israel says remains unverified. Concerns over their fate have intensified following recent IDF assessments.
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The family father, Yarden Bibas, was abducted separately on October 7 and released last week as part of the hostage deal.
Under the terms of the deal, women and children were to be prioritized for release in the first phase of the agreement. Meanwhile, an Israeli delegation is expected to travel to Qatar over the weekend for further low-level discussions on the implementation of the cease-fire and hostage release.
Negotiations for a second phase—which was originally set to begin last week—have instead started in Washington, with U.S. officials, rather than in Doha, where other mediating countries are involved, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
The future of these talks has been further complicated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Gaza’s Palestinian residents to neighboring countries while the enclave is rebuilt. Hamas has strongly rejected the plan, raising concerns that the next hostage release could be delayed as the group reacts to the proposal.
Yarden Bibas reunites with his father and sister after his release from Hamas captivity
(Video: IDF)
Officials also warn that the plan could create significant obstacles ahead of the second-phase negotiations, which are expected to focus on the release of all remaining live hostages, an Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.
Further complicating the matter, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a key far-right coalition ally of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has threatened to collapse the government if Israel agrees to proceed with the second phase of the deal.