16 more hostages freed from Gaza on final day of ceasefire

As in the previous five hostage releases, the civilians captured by Hamas during the attack on Israel on October 7 were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and transported by the humanitarian organization.

Under the terms of the Qatar-brokered deal, 30 Palestinian prisoners - 16 minors and 14 women - will also be released on Wednesday in exchange for the 16 hostages, Majed Al-Ansari, a spokesman for Qatar's Foreign Ministry, said in a statement.

Ansari added that two Russians and four Thais were among the returnees. Ten of the children are Israeli citizens, but five have dual citizenship. One is a minor with Dutch citizenship, three are German citizens, and one is American.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office earlier identified the two Russian-Israeli women freed Wednesday evening as Yelena Trupanov, 50, and Irena Tati, 73. Video from Hamas' armed wing showed the women being handed over to the ICRC and leaving the Gaza Strip.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has just arrived in Tel Aviv, his third trip to Israel since the war broke out on October 7, and is expected to meet with Israeli leaders to discuss extending the temporary ceasefire and increasing humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

Two Palestinian officials said talks were continuing on a possible extension of the ceasefire, which expires this morning (November 30), but no agreement had yet been reached.

Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas commander in Lebanon, said efforts to extend the ceasefire were "not yet mature and what we have received so far is not worth studying".

An Israeli official said earlier that the ceasefire could not be extended without a commitment to release all women and children among the hostages. The official said Israel believed the rebels were still holding enough women and children to extend the truce for another two to three days.

“Qatar remains hopeful that the progress made in recent days can be sustained and that a further extension of the humanitarian pause can be reached,” a Qatari foreign ministry spokesman said.

The ceasefire has brought the first respite to Gazans since fighting began seven weeks ago, but the narrow coastal territory of 2.3 million people has been turned into a wasteland. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that the Gaza Strip was suffering a “horrific humanitarian disaster” and urged the world not to look away.

Huy Hoang (according to Reuters, CNN, AP)

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