Benjamin Netanyahu halts Gaza ceasefire over Hamas hostage list delay
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Benjamin Netanyahu halted a crucial Gaza ceasefire on Sunday after Hamas failed to specify which hostages it would free. The Israeli Prime Minister halted the truce an hour before its planned start as Hamas failed to produce the required list of captives for release.
"The prime minister instructed the IDF that the ceasefire will not begin until Israel has the list of released abductees that Hamas has pledged to provide," his office declared. Hamas blamed mysterious "technical field reasons" for the delay but vowed it was still on board. The group stayed silent on what exactly had gone wrong.
Yet hints of progress emerged on the ground. Israeli troops pulled back to the Philadelphi corridor near Egypt's border. In Khan Younis celebratory gunfire rang out at the original deadline though bombs still fell across parts of Gaza. The deal - which was struck after intense talks with Egypt, Qatar and the US - promises a six-week break in fighting. It would free 33 hostages from Hamas's total of 98 captives—targeting women children elderly and sick prisoners first. In exchange nearly 2,000 Palestinian inmates would walk free.
The first swap planned for Sunday aimed to free three women through the Red Cross. Israel pledged to release 30 Palestinian prisoners for each hostage. This pact could mark a turning point in the bloody 15-month war. Israeli forces would quit key Gaza positions letting displaced Palestinians head north again.
