1 of 2 | Red Cross members receive Israeli abductees from Hamas militants on Friday at Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip as part of a limited negotiated pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas. More hostages are expected to be released Saturday. Photo by Hamas Press Service/UPI | License Photo
Israel on Saturday anxiously awaited a second round hostage releases negotiated as part of a cease-fire with Hamas militants as the halt in fighting allowed more critical humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian group indicated to Egypt it intended to release another 13 Israeli hostages on Saturday as part of the ongoing cease-fire deal, security sources told the Jerusalem Post. Advertisement
Meanwhile, Israeli sources said 42 Palestinian prisoners are due to be handed over in the expected transaction.
If completed, the latest exchange would come a day after 13 Israeli hostages and 12 Thai nationals were released as part of the limited negotiated pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas — the first since hostilities began on Oct. 7.
The Hebrew-language Ynet News reported late Saturday afternoon local time the planned exchange remained on track but had been delayed due to “technical reasons.”
Earlier in the day, the Israeli Defense Forces announced that 200 trucks operated by international aid organizations entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing on Friday, passing into the besieged territory through after a security check at the Nitsana crossing. Advertisement
The trucks contained food, water, shelter and equipment, as well as diesel fuel and cooking gas, the IDF said.
Meanwhile, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, a unit of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, said more than 50 additional humanitarian aid trucks operated by the United Nations had entered into the northern Gaza Strip on Saturday.
The operation is meant to reach Palestinian civilians who have not evacuated northern Gaza as demanded by the Israeli military before its ground assault into the area, COGAT said.
Today, the UN is delivering over 50 trucks containing humanitarian aid (food, water, shelter and medical supplies) to the northern Gaza Strip and to shelters that have not yet been evacuated. The aid is delivered through the evacuation corridor in coordination with Israel. pic.twitter.com/mjTtxspiwp— COGAT (@cogatonline) November 25, 2023
The humanitarian aid trucks entering northern Gaza contained food, water, shelter equipment and medical supplies only, the officials said.
Families of Israeli hostages protest outside parliament
Families and friends of Israeli hostages, being held in captivity by Hamas in Gaza, call on the government for their release at a demonstration outside the Knesset, the parliament, in Jerusalem, on November 6, 2023. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo
