Journalism of Courage
Israel and Hamas carried out their sixth exchange of hostages and prisoners on Saturday, with just over two weeks left in the first phase of the ceasefire, reported AP. (AP photo)
Three hostages—Argentinian-Israeli Iair Horn, 46; American-Israeli Sagui Dekel Chen, 36; and Russian-Israeli Alexander Troufanov, 29—were released. (AP photo)
Armed Hamas militants forced the three hostages to speak publicly before handing them over to the Red Cross. (AP photo)
In exchange, Israel released 369 Palestinian prisoners. (AP photo)
A dispute earlier in the week had threatened the truce, but Hamas proceeded with the exchange after Egypt and Qatar assured increased humanitarian aid for Gaza. (AP photo)
Donald Trump commented on social media that the hostages “seem to be in good shape,” while also falsely stating that Israel had a deadline for releasing all captives. (AP photo)
Of the 251 people abducted, 73 remain in Gaza, about half believed to be dead. One former hostage, Keith Siegel, 65, said he was abused by captors as the war intensified. (AP photo)
Among the released Palestinian prisoners were 36 serving life sentences for deadly attacks on Israelis. (AP photo)
The ceasefire, which began on 19 January, has seen 24 hostages and over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners freed. However, no negotiations have taken place for the next phase, which requires Hamas to release all remaining hostages in exchange for an end to the war. (AP photo
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right allies are pushing for renewed military action by early March, while Hamas has signalled reluctance to release more hostages without guarantees the ceasefire will hold. (AP photo)
With the ceasefire’s first phase set to end in early March, uncertainty looms over whether fighting will resume or negotiations will extend the truce. (AP photo)
