Israel, Hamas Poised For Third Hostage-Prisoner Exchange

A fourth exchange is scheduled for the weekend, but Hamas accused Israel on Wednesday of jeopardising the deal by holding up aid deliveries, an allegation Israel dismissed as “fake news”.

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified the three Israelis to be released on Thursday as Arbel Yehud, Agam Berger and Gadi Moses, adding that five Thais held in Gaza would also be freed.

Ahead of the release, which sources in Hamas and allied militant group Islamic Jihad said would take place at Jabalia refugee camp and Khan Yunis at around 0900 GMT, Islamic jihad aired video footage of Moses and Yehud hugging each other and smiling.

On Wednesday, a Moses family statement said it had “received with great excitement the wonderful news of our beloved Gadi’s return” 

Demonstrators raise placards as they celebrate the release of three hostages held captive in Gaza since the October 7, 2023 attack by Palestinian militants, in front of the Israeli Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv on January 30, 2025. Israel and Hamas were set to carry out their third hostage-prisoner exchange on January 30, with three Israelis and five Thai captives slated for release as part of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the Gaza war. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP)

The ceasefire that began on January 19 hinges on the release of Israeli hostages taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack, in exchange for 1,900 people — mostly Palestinians — in Israeli custody.

Hamas has so far released seven hostages, with 290 prisoners freed in exchange.I

srael is to release 110 prisoners, including 30 minors, in exchange for the three Israelis, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club advocacy group said.

The next swap on Saturday will see three Israeli men released, according to Netanyahu’s office.

The truce deal has allowed truckloads of aid into the devastated Gaza Strip, where the war has created a long-running humanitarian crisis.

More than 376,000 displaced Palestinians have gone back to northern Gaza since Israel reopened access earlier this week, according to the UN humanitarian office OCHA, with many returning to little more than rubble

“My house is destroyed,” 33-year-old Mohammed Al-Faleh told AFP. “This morning, we built a small room with two walls made from the remains of our home. There is no cement, so I used mud.

“The biggest problem is that there is no water — all the water wells are destroyed,” he added.

“Food aid is reaching Gaza… but there is no gas or electricity. We bake bread on a fire fuelled by wood and nylon.”

Source 

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