Israel Prepares for Hostage Release; Hamas Sets New Terms

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that his country is beginning preparations for the process of releasing hostages. This step follows the Hamas movement's agreement to a part of the peace plan proposed by US President Donald Trump. However, despite the progress, Hamas is putting forward new conditions that could complicate the process.

In response to Hamas's reaction, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement saying: "In light of Hamas's response, Israel is preparing for the immediate implementation of the first phase of Trump's plan for the urgent release of all hostages." The statement also emphasized that Israel will continue to work closely with the US President and his team to "bring the war to an end in accordance with the principles of Israel and Trump."

At the same time, Hamas, while confirming that it is in principle ready to release all hostages, insists that it has lost contact with some of them. For this reason, the movement considers the return of everyone within 72 hours to be "unrealistic" and demands the start of new negotiations to revise the deadlines and conditions.

It should be recalled that the peace plan proposed by US President Donald Trump provides for the following sequence of steps. If both sides agree to the plan, the war is immediately stopped, and Israeli troops withdraw to a pre-agreed line. After that, Hamas undertakes to release all hostages, both living and deceased. In turn, Israel must release 250 Palestinian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, as well as 1,700 residents of Gaza arrested after October 7, 2023.