Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said an agreement was reached for two additional days of cease-fire, but did not share any other immediate details. The White House also confirmed the extended truce, which will see the release of more hostages.
Israel and Hamas have paused deadly fighting in Gaza since Friday, when the first group of prisoners and hostages were released and a greater flow of humanitarian aid began entering the coastal strip.
Israel and Hamas have kept their word, releasing three rounds of hostages and prisoners over the course of four days.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said later Monday 11 more hostages are leaving Gaza and are headed to Israel. The agreement to extend the truce indicates more could be released in the coming days.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the extended truce is expected to pave the way for the release of 20 more hostages, who will be women and children. He also said the negotiating parties would continue to work to extend the truce again but the U.S. was focused on a “piece at a time.”
“We want to see all the hostages out, and this is the best way to get them out,” Kirby told reporters. “We won’t breathe a sigh of relief until we know we’ve got today’s hostages out.”
Kirby said somewhere around eight American hostages are being held by Hamas inside of Gaza. At least one American citizen was released in the exchanges so far, a 4-year-old girl.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said 33 Palestinian civilians, including 30 minors and three women, will be released in exchange for the hostages that had been held by Hamas.
About 58 hostages had been released by Hamas before Monday’s announcement, and more than 100 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
