Israel Expects Gaza Hostages Freed Early Monday

Palestinian Prisoners to Be Freed After All Gaza Hostages Confirmed to Be in Israel

Israel will begin releasing Palestinian prisoners once it has confirmation that all hostages held in Gaza have arrived in the country, a spokeswoman for the prime minister said Sunday.

“Palestinian prisoners will be released once Israel has confirmation that all of our hostages set to be released tomorrow are across the border into Israel,” Shosh Bedrosian told journalists.

During previous ceasefires, the remains of some hostages were identified by forensic experts after their return to Israel.

Bedrosian said that pending the identification, the Palestinian prisoners would be on buses ready to depart.

“As soon as we have confirmation that they (hostages) have entered Israeli territory, those buses will depart and begin their journey,” she said.

She said the release of all hostages held in the Gaza Strip for more than two years was expected to begin early Monday morning.

Israel and Hamas have approved the first phase of a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, aimed at ending the war in Gaza sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

Under the terms of the plan, Hamas is to release by Monday noon the remaining 47 hostages (living and dead) who were abducted on October 7.

It is also expected to hand over the remains of a soldier killed in 2014 during a previous Gaza war.

During the last truce, the identification of deceased hostages was only confirmed after autopsies at Israel’s Abu Kabir Forensic Institute.