Egypt Daily News – Israeli media revealed a new settlement as part of the prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel, which includes Hamas handing over four Israeli bodies to Egypt in exchange for the release of a number of Palestinian prisoners.
The Israeli news website “Kikar,” citing sources, reported that the settlement was reached after disputes over the mechanism for handing over Israeli prisoners as part of the exchange deal. Israel accused Hamas of conducting a handover ceremony that it described as “humiliating.”
According to a report by Israeli journalist Amit Segal on Channel 12, the bodies of two Israelis will be transferred to Egypt within the next 24 hours, followed by the release of 301 Palestinian prisoners. After that, two more Israeli bodies will be handed over, and the remaining Palestinian prisoners will be released, marking the completion of the first phase of the deal, which was supposed to include those set for release in the seventh round of the exchange process.
Reports indicated that the main disagreement between the two sides revolves around Israel’s opposition to Hamas’ demand for the simultaneous release of Palestinian prisoners alongside the handover of the bodies. Israel cited past experiences, such as the case of Shiri Bibas’ remains, as a reason for its stance.
Meanwhile, the head of the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet), Ronen Bar, and Major General Nitzan Alon warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that delaying the release of Palestinian prisoners could hinder the continuation of the hostage exchange deal.
Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi stated that the movement would not engage in any discussions with Israel through mediators regarding any further steps until the Palestinian prisoners agreed upon for release on Saturday were freed.
On Saturday, Hamas released six prisoners as planned, while Israel was supposed to release more than 600 Palestinian detainees in the seventh round of the exchange under the truce agreement. However, Tel Aviv decided to delay their release until it could ensure the hostages would be freed without what it called “provocative ceremonies,” as announced by Prime Minister Netanyahu on Saturday evening.
Early Sunday, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office stated that the delay in releasing Palestinian prisoners would continue until it could guarantee the next batch of hostages would be freed without what it described as “humiliating ceremonies.”
Netanyahu’s office accused Hamas of deliberately humiliating prisoners and exploiting them for political purposes.
