Hamas has released seven surviving Israeli hostages to the Red Cross as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal, marking a major step in the ongoing hostage-prisoner exchange between the warring parties.
Earlier, the Israeli military confirmed that a Red Cross convoy was en route to collect the first group of hostages being freed by Hamas.
The development comes as US President Donald Trump departs for Israel and Egypt, where he is expected to co-host a Gaza peace summit with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
The latest ceasefire deal hinges on a mutual exchange agreement that involves freeing hostages taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack in return for Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons.
Under the terms of the initial phase, 47 Israeli hostages both living and dead will be swapped for 250 prisoners and 1,700 Gazans held since the outbreak of the conflict.
Hamas is also expected to hand over the remains of a soldier killed in the 2014 Gaza war.
Hamas’s armed wing confirmed on Monday that preparations for the release of living hostages were underway, publishing a list of 20 names.
Shortly after, Israel’s military said the Red Cross convoy was on its way to pick up the first batch.
An army statement said the handover would take place at “a meeting point in the northern Gaza Strip where several hostages will be transferred.”
Israel expects all 20 living hostages to reach Red Cross custody “early Monday morning,” according to a spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, ahead of the 0900 GMT deadline set under the ceasefire terms brokered by Trump.
Netanyahu’s spokesperson added that the prisoners would be “released once Israel has confirmation that all of our hostages set to be released tomorrow are across the border into Israel.”
However, Israel does not expect all of the deceased hostages to be returned immediately.
Meanwhile, preparations are underway for the Gaza peace summit in Egypt’s Sharm El-Sheikh, where Trump and Sisi will chair a meeting of more than 20 world leaders.
The gathering, according to the Egyptian presidency, aims “to end the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional security and stability.”
Egypt’s foreign ministry said a “document ending the war in the Gaza Strip” is expected to be signed during the “historic” summit, with mediators from the US, Egypt, Qatar, and possibly Turkey expected to serve as guarantors.
Neither Israel nor Hamas will be represented at the summit. Netanyahu’s office confirmed that no Israeli officials would attend, while Hamas also ruled out participation.
Among the world leaders expected at the event are UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Other participating nations include members of the EU, the Arab League, the UAE, Oman, Pakistan, Indonesia, India, and Germany. Iran has declined participation, confirming that neither President Masoud Pezeshkian nor Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will attend.
A Hamas source told AFP that the group would not participate in the post-war governance of Gaza, saying it had “relinquished control of the Strip,” but emphasized it “remains a fundamental part of the Palestinian fabric.”
“Hamas agrees to a long-term truce, and for its weapons not to be used at all during this period, except in the event of an Israeli attack on Gaza,” the source said.
Another Hamas official dismissed any suggestion of disarmament, describing it as “out of the question.”
Meanwhile, aid efforts continue, with more than 200 trucks carrying supplies including six fuel trucks and five with cooking gas unloaded at the Kerem Shalom crossing on Sunday before returning to Egypt.