Hamas has announced it will release hostages this weekend as planned, suggesting the recent conflict with Israel over a ceasefire has been resolved.
The Times of Israel reported on February 13 that Hamas has agreed to continue implementing the ceasefire agreement and will release hostages as planned. The next hostage release will take place on February 15.
Israeli tanks at the border with the Gaza Strip on February 12.
Earlier this week, Hamas unexpectedly announced a delay in releasing the hostages and accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement, while Tel Aviv denied it.
Phase 1 of the 42-day ceasefire began on January 19, under which Hamas agreed to release 33 hostages in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Under the deal, aid will also be increased to the Gaza Strip while Palestinians will be allowed to return to the northern part of the enclave.
So far, Hamas has released 16 Israeli hostages out of 33, in addition to five Thai hostages under a separate deal.
Hamas has said it does not want the deal to collapse, while rejecting threats from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump. Both leaders have said the deal should be scrapped if the hostages are not released.
The new announcement was made after a Hamas delegation led by senior official Khalil al-Hayya arrived in Cairo, Egypt, for talks with negotiating mediators.
Hamas said Egyptian and Qatari officials had promised to remove barriers to aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip. The talks focused on Israel allowing mobile homes, tents, medicine, fuel and heavy machinery to enter the Gaza Strip to help clear debris, Reuters reported.
Trucks carrying aid in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on February 13.
During a visit to soldiers fighting in the Gaza Strip on February 13, Director of the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet, one of Israel's three main intelligence agencies) Ronen Bar said that Israeli security forces and the army were prepared for escalation if the ceasefire agreement collapsed.
Regarding the situation in the Middle East, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian announced on February 13 that enemies can attack Iran's nuclear facilities but cannot prevent Tehran from building new facilities, according to Reuters.
The statement came after US media reported that the country's intelligence community assessed that Israel had the ability to launch a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities this year.
"They threatened us that they would attack nuclear facilities. If you attack hundreds of them, we will build thousands of them. You can hit the buildings and the sites but you cannot hit the people who build them," said Mr. Pezeshkian.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hamas-dong-y-tha-con-tin-nhu-ke-hoach-goi-y-thoa-thuan-ngung-ban-duoc-cuu-185250213201919585.htm
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