Media: Israel confident of releasing four more hostages this weekend

Israeli officials have expressed confidence that Hamas will comply with the hostage deal agreement and release the four hostages on January 25, officials told The Jerusalem Post.

They added that they expected that Hamas would provide the complete list of names of the remaining hostages to be released during the 42-day phase, along with details of their medical conditions, Caliber.Az reports.

In the agreement that was signed a week ago, Hamas agreed to transfer the list on day seven of the ceasefire.

To recall, Hamas recently announced that four more female Israeli hostages will be freed this weekend in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, as the new US president, Donald Trump, said he was not confident that the ceasefire deal that he personally insisted on would hold.

The upcoming release is expected to involve female Israeli soldiers, who will be swapped for Palestinian prisoners with longer sentences currently held in Israeli prisons. Some of these Palestinian prisoners will be deported to third countries.

After the release of three women on January 19, seven Israeli women remain from the initial group of 33 hostages set to be freed in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement. This phase also includes women, children, the elderly, and sick individuals.

On January 15, 2025, Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire, effective January 19, 2025, following 15 months of conflict. The agreement includes the release of hostages and prisoners, with Hamas releasing 33 Israeli hostages, including women and children, in exchange for Israel releasing 90 Palestinian prisoners.

Additionally, humanitarian aid is being allowed into Gaza, and displaced Palestinians are permitted to return to their homes. The ceasefire was brokered by the United States, Egypt, and Qatar, with both the Biden and Trump administrations playing roles in facilitating the agreement.

The deal is structured in three phases: first, a six-week ceasefire, during which hostages and prisoners are exchanged, and humanitarian aid is delivered to Gaza; second, negotiations for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza; and third, the reconstruction of Gaza over a period of three to five years. 

By Khagan Isayev