UPDATES WITH ISRAELI CONFIRMATION
By Hosni Nedim and Rania Abu Shamala
ISTANBUL (AA) – The Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, said Wednesday that it will hand over the bodies of four Israeli captives “tonight.”
In a brief statement, spokesman Abu Obaida identified the four dead hostages as Tsahi Idan, Itzik Al-Jarit, Ohad Yahalomi, and Shlomi Mansour.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the four bodies will be returned tonight “without Hamas ceremonies.”
Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the release of four deceased hostages is expected to take place at 11:00 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) without a formal ceremony.
Haaretz newspaper, citing an unnamed source, said that the Israel Prison Service was preparing to release Palestinian prisoners overnight.
The handover is part of a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in Gaza last month, pausing Israel’s destructive war that has killed nearly 48,350 people, mostly women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said early Wednesday that the handover will take place in exchange for Israel’s release of hundreds of prisoners.
“The resistance will hand over the bodies of four Israeli captives, in parallel with Israel’s release of the delayed batch of Palestinian prisoners, along with corresponding Palestinian women and children,” he told Anadolu.
He confirmed that “clear guarantees” had been secured from mediators and that a new mechanism was agreed upon to ensure Israel fulfills its commitments. However, he did not disclose details of the mechanism.
Abdel Latif al-Qanoua, another Hamas spokesman, said in a statement that the exchange would proceed “under a new mechanism guaranteeing Israel’s compliance.”
“Egyptian mediators have secured this agreement, and we remain committed to completing and enforcing it,” he added.
Following this exchange, all prisoner releases under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement will be completed.
The first phase includes the release of 33 Israeli captives and 1,737 Palestinian prisoners in stages over six weeks.
Israel has refused to release 620 Palestinian prisoners in return for four bodies of Israeli captives on Saturday, citing what it called the “degrading handover ceremonies” of hostages.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.