Hamas condemns delayed release of Palestinian prisoners

Hamas has condemned Israel's decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, saying its claim that the hostages' handover ceremonies are "humiliating" was false and a pretext to evade Israel's obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Netanyahu's decision reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a clear violation of its terms, and shows the occupation's lack of reliability in implementing its obligations," Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said in a statement.

Israel said earlier it was delaying the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners it had planned to free yesterday until Hamas met its conditions, underscoring the fragility of the Gaza ceasefire accord.

mR Netanyahu's office released a statement in the early hours this morning saying that Israel was waiting to deliver the 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees "until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies."

Mr Rashq said the ceremonies do not include any insult to the hostages, "but rather reflect the humane and dignified treatment of them", adding that the "real insult" is what the Palestinian prisoners are subjected to during the release process.

The Palestinian militant group official cited the hands' tying of the Palestinian prisoners and detainees and their blindfolding and threatening them not to hold any celebrations for their release as examples of their humiliation at the hands of Israeli authorities.

Israel's announcement, which also accused Hamas of repeatedly violating the month-old ceasefire, came after the Palestinian militant group yesterday handed over six hostages from Gaza as part of an exchange arranged under the truce.

The six hostages freed were the last living Israeli captives due to be handed over during the first phase of the ceasefire. The bodies of four dead Israeli hostages were to be released next week.

Since the ceasefire came into effect on 19 January, Hamas has released 25 Israeli hostages in well-rehearsed handovers, with masked militants parading the captives on stage and forcing them to wave at Gazans gathered to watch.

"In light of Hamas' repeated violations - including the disgraceful ceremonies that dishonour our hostages and the cynical use of hostages for propaganda - it has been decided to delay the release of terrorists that was planned for yesterday until the release of the next hostages is ensured, without the humiliating ceremonies," Mr Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that Hamas would be "destroyed" if it did not release all the remaining hostages.

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank and in Gaza, families had waited for hours for their loved ones to be released from Israeli custody in exchange for the six Israelis returned home.

"Waiting is very difficult," said Shireen al-Hamamreh, whose brother was due for release.

"We are patient and we will remain stronger than the occupier, God willing," she told AFP in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

A 'blatant violation'

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group had said Israel would free 620 inmates yesterday, most of them Gazans taken into custody during the war.

Before Mr Netanyahu's announcement, Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif al-Qanou said Israel's "failure to comply with the release ... at the agreed-upon time constitutes a blatant violation of the agreement".

He called on the truce mediators to pressure Israel to "implement its provisions without delay or obstruction".

The delayed release comes after an emotional few days in Israel, where the remains of hostage Shiri Bibas were identified after the initial handover of a different body.

Mr Netanyahu has said Hamas will pay "the full price" for what he termed a violation of the truce deal over Ms Bibas's return.

Ms Bibas and her two young sons, among dozens taken captive during Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war, had become symbols of the ordeal suffered by the Israeli hostages.

Forensics expert Chen Kugel said an autopsy conducted on their remains found "no evidence of injuries caused by a bombing".

Hamas militants had claimed that all three were killed in an Israeli air strike.

'Coming back home'

The six Israelis released yesterday were the last group of living hostages set to be freed under the truce's first phase.

The deal, which has so far enabled the release of 30 captives, is due to expire in early March.

Negotiations for a second phase, which is meant to lead to a permanent end to the war, have yet to begin.

At a ceremony in Nuseirat, central Gaza, Eliya Cohen, 27, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Israeli-Argentine Omer Wenkert, 23, waved from a stage, flanked by masked Hamas militants, before their handover to the Red Cross.

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'Mix-up'

On Thursday, the first transfer of dead hostages under the truce sparked anger in Israel after analysis concluded that Ms Bibas's remains were not among the four bodies returned.

Hamas admitted a possible "mix-up of bodies", and late Friday handed over more human remains which the Bibas family said had been identified as Ms Bibas.

The family said in a statement she "was murdered in captivity and has now returned home... to rest."

Out of 251 people taken hostage during the October 2023 attack, 62 are still in Gaza including 35 the Israeli military says are dead.

The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,215 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,319 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.