Israeli diplomat in Russia says cease-fire in Gaza possible for exchange of hostages

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - An Israeli diplomat working in Russia said on Friday that her country might consider a cease-fire in Gaza only under the condition of a hostage exchange with Hamas.

"A temporary cease-fire is only possible to free the Israeli hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza," Julia Rachinsky-Spivakov told local media answering a question about a possibility of declaring a pause in hostilities for the time of religious holidays.

Israel has waged an unrelenting offensive on the Palestinian enclave since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023 which killed some 1,200 people and took around 250 as hostages.

Nearly 34,600 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and much of Gaza has been reduced to a rubble besides causing widespread hunger and disease.

A brief November truce resulted in the return of some hostages in exchange of Palestinian prisoners.

Cease-fire talks are currently underway in Egypt, with international mediators trying to hammer out an agreement.

Asked about the safety of civilian flights arriving in Israel to transport the Holy Fire to their respective countries for Easter, Rachinsky-Spivakov assured that the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority guarantees the safety of all incoming aircraft.

According to her, the arrival and departure of the Russian board, as well as the aircraft of other countries, were coordinated with the relevant authorities in Israel with the assistance of the embassy.

Rachinsky-Spivakov said the Israeli side cannot rule out "provocations by terrorist organizations" during Easter celebrations in Jerusalem.

"The situation in Israel remains tense, and unfortunately, we cannot rule out the possibility of provocations by terrorist organizations," she said.

Orthodox Christians will celebrate Easter, or the Resurrection of Christ, this Sunday.