The humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was extended early Thursday morning, shortly before the six-day truce was set to expire.
“The operational pause will continue in light of the mediators’ efforts to continue the process of releasing the hostages and subject to the terms of the framework,” the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) announced on X, formerly Twitter. The announcement came minutes before the expiration of the truce.
The conditions of the ceasefire, including the halt of hostilities and the entry of humanitarian aid, remain the same, according to a foreign ministry spokesperson from Qatar.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid bin Muhammad Al-Ansari said the one-day extension was agreed upon “under the same previous terms.”
“The Palestinian and Israeli sides had reached an agreement to extend the humanitarian truce in the Gaza Strip for an additional day,” Mr. Al-Ansari said.
In further comments, the Qatari official said that from Qatar’s view, the negotiations continue in the hopes of reaching a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, where the Hamas terror group rules. Israel has said it will continue with its military offensive in Gaza to neutralize Hamas after the temporary pause ends.
The last-minute deal will allow one more day for negotiating deals to continue the exchange of Israeli hostages who were abducted by Hamas terrorists last month for Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
During the ceasefire, humanitarian aid has also been trucked from Egypt into war-torn Gaza, where 2.3 million people were evacuated amid airstrikes and a military offensive in response to Hamas’ deadly rampage in southern Israel.
On Wednesday, Hamas freed 16 hostages in exchange for 30 Palestinian prisoners.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Hamas had provided a new list of women and children hostages for release. Their families have been notified, per the statement.
“A short while ago, Israel received a list of women and children, in accordance with the terms of the agreement, and therefore the pause will resume,” the statement said.
An Israeli official reiterated on Wednesday that the ceasefire would continue for one additional day for every 10 Israeli hostages released.
Hamas said earlier that Israel had refused their offer of releasing seven women and children and the bodies of three dead hostages in the 10 it would release.
Hamas blamed the deaths of the three Israeli hostages, a family including the youngest hostage, 10-month-old Kfir Bibas, on Israel’s bombardment of the enclave.
Before the agreement, both Israel and Hamas had said they were ready to resume fighting.
According to a Reuters tally, 97 hostages have been freed since the start of the truce. The Israeli military says 145 hostages remain in Gaza.
On Wednesday night, two Russian citizens and four Thai citizens were released outside the framework of the agreement, while the 10 Israeli citizens freed included five dual nationals, officials said. They were a Dutch dual citizen, who is also a minor, three German dual citizens, and one U.S. dual citizen.
Diplomatic Push
Israel has sworn to eliminate Hamas after the terrorist group’s deadly Oct. 7 attack. Israel has said that during the deadly rampage, Hamas gunmen killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages.
Prior to the ceasefire, Israel conducted a seven-week bombardment of the territory, resulting in over 15,000 Palestinian casualties, according to the Hamas-led health authorities in the coastal strip.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had arrived in Tel Aviv earlier on Thursday, local time, his third trip to the region since the Oct. 7 attack, to discuss extending the pause in fighting.
U.S. President Joe Biden was determined “to bring every hostage home and to get more aid to the innocent people of Gaza” after Israeli-American Liat Beinin was freed on Wednesday, the White House said in a statement.
The United States is urging Israel to narrow the combat zone and specify safe areas for Palestinian civilians during Israeli operations in southern Gaza, aiming to avoid a repeat of the high death toll in the north.
On Wednesday, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of an “epic humanitarian catastrophe” in the Gaza Strip, advocating for a ceasefire to replace the temporary truce.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Delaying Hamas’s ultimate well-earned total destruction, by incremental ceasefires that allow the release of innocent hostages, with Hamas still thinking their cause is righteous and tactics justifiable,,, will still only end in the destruction of Hamas, just like thinking you can prop up unworkable, unreasonable, mal-created American social programs by printing worthless dollars, and incurring unsustainable debt. The only difference in the debilitating tactics and ideology of Hamas, and our socialist conquered American Democrat party of spendthrifts in their war against the American people, is where the Democrats use and debase our currency, Hamas uses hostages as injured and debased currency, to buy them more time for the debasement of themselves to live another day. Self-destruction alone await them both in similar ultimate outcomes. Most times by postponing the inevitable, you just make the destruction greater, and the pain and loss of life last longer. For every one innocent hostage released in ceasefire, 20 more innocent Israeli soldiers will pay the cost in lost lives and war deformed bodies by allowing Hamas more time to recoup and recover, then follows the increased and delay empowered killing to live a few longer days, weeks, months. If makes no sense to equate 1 released innocent Israeli hostage for three guilty Hamas criminals on the one hand, then pay for it again in the blood currency of even more brave Israeli soldiers.
Had the Civil war Southern Democrats offered to release the millions of black slaves held hostage in Georgia and the South, in order to stop General Sherman’s ravaging March from Atlanta to the sea, Lincoln probably would have agreed. But the odds would have been reversed exchanging millions of saved black slave lives, for foregoing the deaths of tens of thousands of Rebel soldiers, and slain livestock and crops that temporarily fed and sustained the enemy. Me thinks Trump would have negotiated a much better deal than this lopsided misdeal that our brain debilitated Biden President came up with, conceived in the minds of establishment puppet masters that never let a crisis go to waste. Someone is getting financially benefitted in this delay, and it has all the markings of another Biden money laundering scheme, this time perhaps with Qatar sending the Biden Crime family a percentage share of the money they send to Hamas, with Qatar already benefitting billions from Joe shutting down domestic oil production to raise its price once in office, then propping down the prices of oil by depleting our strategic oil reserve especially around election times.
IMO Israel is foolish to do this.
I’m very sorry for the hostages but it’s obvious they are only hostages instead of being slaughtered on 10/7 is for the Islam terrorists & butchers benefit.
Based on their actions in recent years, it’s terrifying to realize that the current Biden/Obama Dem Party govt is willing to sacrifice the lives of millions of Israelis, US citizens & the entire non Islam world to defend, support & protect the genocidal Islam political & religious belief system that has historically used violence, terror & brutality in it’s effort to achieve Islamic dominance in every land they have populated.
I really can’t comprehend why any US govt or any free world govt would spend one minute or one dollar to support a vicious, murderous, genocidal Islamist govt & population that publicly proclaims they would like to do to.US or anyone else against them what they are doing to Israel.
ANd worse, its been BOTH Republican AND democrat administrations doing that.
Well, I see the bloodthirsty Islamists have decided the truce is over.
And while Israel fights a life or death war, the seemingly pro Islam terrorism Obama/Biden US govt & UN are demanding Israel provide aid & comfort to their mortal enemies & not hurt them too much, which is something the US & no other nation has ever done or would ever do themselves in this situation.
Too bad that Israel has a backstabbing US as their “war ally” instead of China or Russia or any other nation who I don’t think would act with kindness & restraint for Islamists, civilians or not, or anyone else that started bombing, invading & slaughtering them.
If US & UN are so damn worried about Palestinians then why aren’t they demanding they surrender, especially since they started the war by slaughtering innocent Israelis.
There is only one moral & humane right side to be on here & it is with Israel, not Islamists & their butchery.
And everyone should shut up about a Palestinian state & instead demand that Islam prove its claims of peacefulness & willingness to live civilly among Jews & non Islam people.
Until the non Islam world shows it is willing to eradicate Islam terrorism then no one will be able to prevent the misery, war & death that Islam brings on its own & other peoples.
Dearborn, Mi mayor made speech with interesting talking points. One being the 1945 Allied command came up with the land borders( they should have seen this current situation coming) in 1947 which leads to idea maybe coalition of nations can do something similar now. Beats killing thousands followed by an occupied Apartheid style territory. November 30th or date near then is anniversary of the land being divided. 1947
Of all those interested, it would seem like we’d come up with something really fair, doable and satisfying to all involved.