By Isabel Kershner and Abu Bakr Bashir
As Israeli and Hamas officials continued indirect talks Monday for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, Hamas representatives indicated that the group had approved an Israeli list of 34 hostages to be released in the first stage of an agreement, conveying a sense of momentum.
But the Israeli government quickly dampened any notion that Hamas’ acceptance of the list constituted a significant breakthrough toward ending the war in the Gaza Strip.
Here’s what we know about the list of hostages and the state of the talks, after months of false starts and failed rounds.
What Hamas says
A Hamas representative briefed on the negotiations told The New York Times on Monday that if a deal is reached, Hamas agrees to release the 34 hostages whose names appear on a list that Israel provided via mediators. The representative spoke on the condition of anonymity because the talks are being held in secrecy.
The United States has long been pushing for a deal and is trying to facilitate one with the help of Qatar and Egypt, the two main countries mediating between Israel and Hamas.
The Reuters news agency reported Sunday night that Hamas had approved the list presented by Israel. The report cited an unnamed Hamas official who added that any hostage deal was contingent upon Israel agreeing to a timetable for withdrawal from Gaza and a permanent ceasefire, in line with Hamas’ long-standing demands.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has refused to openly declare any willingness to end the war, vowing to eradicate Hamas as a military force and governing power in Gaza.
Roughly 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza out of some 250 people taken captive during the Hamas-led attacks in October 2023 that prompted the war. At least a third of the captives are presumed to be dead, according to Israel.
A weeklong truce in November 2023 allowed for the release of 105 hostages in exchange for some 240 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israel. Only a few hostages have been rescued alive by Israeli forces, and the bodies of dozens of others have been recovered. Israeli soldiers accidentally killed three hostages whom they misidentified as fighters.
What Israel says
Israel sent the original list of hostages to be released in the first phase of any deal to the mediators in July 2024, according to a statement released Monday by Netanyahu’s office.
But the list has since been updated because three of those who originally appeared on it — Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American Israeli dual citizen, and two Israeli women, Carmel Gat and Eden Yerushalmi — were killed by their captors in late August. The newer version of the list was published by the BBC on Monday, and Netanyahu’s office appeared to confirm its authenticity.
In this latest round of talks, Israel has demanded information from Hamas about which hostages remain alive. Without that, Israeli officials say, there can be no agreement on how many Palestinian prisoners Israel would be willing to release in exchange for them.
“As yet, Israel has not received any confirmation or comment by Hamas regarding the status of the hostages appearing on the list,” Netanyahu’s office said in its statement.
The list includes 10 women, five of them soldiers; 11 older male hostages between the ages of 50 and 85; two young children who Hamas previously said had been killed in an Israeli airstrike, but whose deaths have not been confirmed by Israeli authorities; and other male hostages whose release Israel considers urgent.
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