Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing Persons, Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch, has returned to Israel on Friday for the fifth wave of hostage releases the next day.
Israel has yet to receive the names of the hostages from Hamas set to be released on Saturday, but the three planned to be released are male hostages.
Israeli officials warned the terrorist organization that they “will respond to any violation of the hostage deal.”
Hirsch will update Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the fifth wave of hostage releases while the Israeli leader is meeting with US officials in Washington, DC.
Seventy-nine hostages are still being held captive in the Gaza Strip as of Friday.
Officials fear that recent statements by US President Donald Trump about destroying Hamas and relocating Gazans to other countries will cause the terrorist organization to delay or disrupt the hostage release process.
Hamas was killing hostages as negotiations were underway for a deal – Hirsch
Before the hostage deal went into effect, Hirsch said last September at a MEAD Conference in the US capital that Hamas had been killing hostages even as international mediation efforts had continued for a ceasefire.
“There is a direct link between international pressure on Israel and Hamas’ willingness to negotiate,” he said. “While our negotiating team is in Doha, Hamas continues to kill hostages in Gaza. The military pressure will not stop.”
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.
