JERUSALAEM, Feb 23: Israel postponed the exchange of Palestinian prisoners previously scheduled for February 22 amid “humiliating ceremonies” with hostages released from the Gaza Strip, the Associated Press reported, citing the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel says the release of more than 600 Palestinian prisoners is being postponed “until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies” when transferring Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip, the agency said, citing a statement from the prime minister’s office.
Hamas released six Israeli hostages on Saturday in the seventh exchange under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire. Hamas’s prisoner affairs office had previously said that Israel should release more than 600 Palestinian prisoners in return, but they have not yet been released.
A ceasefire has been in effect in the Gaza Strip since January 19 as part of an agreement between Israel and the Palestinian movement Hamas to release Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The guarantors of the agreement are Qatar, Egypt and the United States, which has set up a coordination center in Cairo.
This is the second ceasefire in the conflict: the first was concluded in November 2023 and lasted only six days.
(UNI)
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