Gaza
Israel receives list of three hostages to be released by Hamas tomorrow
Israel has received the names of three more hostages who will be released by Hamas on Saturday, the sixth exchange that will take place since the ceasefire deal began on January 19.
Israel has reportedly received the names of American-Israeli Sagui Dekel-Chen, Russian-Israeli Alexandre Troufanov and Argentinian-Israeli Iair Horn.
A release of 369 Palestinian prisoners by Israel is expected to follow, Hamas’ Prisoner Media Office was quoted as saying by CNN.
Troufanov was kidnapped during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas members, an incident which triggered Israel's Gaza invasion.
Apart from Troufanov, his grandmother, Irena Tati, his mother Lena Troufanov and girlfriend Sapir Cohen, were also abducted.
However, they were all released in the earlier phase of the cease deal.
His father, who was identified as Vitaly, was killed during the attack.
Dekel-Chen was 35 when he was abducted by Hamas. He was trying to defend his Nir Oz from Hamas attackers.
His wife was pregnant with their third child at the time of his abduction.
His third child was born when he was in captivity.
Horn was abducted along with his brother Eitan.
Eitan still remains in captivity.
So far, 16 Israeli and five Thai nationals, out of the 33 scheduled, hostages have been released in the current phase of the ceasefire deal.
UN racing against time
Meanwhile, the UN is racing against time to expand humanitarian relief and prepare for the monumental task of rebuilding Gaza, as a fragile ceasefire holds but tensions loom over a potential resumption of fighting.
The UN is racing against time to expand humanitarian relief and prepare for the monumental task of rebuilding Gaza, as a fragile ceasefire holds but tensions loom over a potential resumption of fighting.
“There is no time to lose,” said the head of the office responsible for UN reconstruction efforts (UNOPS), Jorge Moreira da Silva, during a briefing in New York via videolink from the Middle East, following his visit to Gaza this week.
The devastation he witnessed was stark: “By one estimate, 40 million tons of debris and rubble were generated by the conflict, which will take years to remove.”
While the ceasefire has allowed for a scale-up in humanitarian operations, Mr. Moreira da Silva underscored that the pause in hostilities is far from enough.
“I reiterate the call for a permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages without delay,” he stressed.
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