The release of Israeli-American captive Edan Alexander, following direct negotiations between the U.S. and Hamas, comes after the Trump administration had already caught Israel off guard by agreeing to halt hostilities with Yemen’s Ansar Allah.
Hamas says Israel’s delay in allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza is a breach of the ceasefire deal and is “a new war on the Palestinian people.” The group has delayed the release of more Israeli captives “until further notice.”
110 Palestinians were freed from Israeli captivity in exchange for three Israeli captives in Gaza, after Israel initially tried to suspend releasing the Palestinian prisoners over complaints of “chaos” during the handover of the Israeli captives.
With the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, the truce between Hezbollah and Israel, and reports of progress in Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo, Palestinians in the Strip are hopeful their reality may soon change.