JERUSALEM— Hamas’ threat to delay the next planned release of Israeli hostages from the Gaza Strip has jolted a fragile ceasefire that’s seen as having the potential to wind down the war.
It has brought new dismay for Israelis who watched the latest Hamas handover of hostages in growing horror over the weekend as the three emaciated men came into sight. Of the 17 hostages yet to be released from Gaza under this phase of the ceasefire, Israel has said eight are dead.
The next handover of three hostages had been scheduled for Saturday, and families say time is running out for those still alive. Israel now awaits what comes from a security Cabinet meeting Tuesday morning, moved up in response to Monday’s Hamas announcement.
The developments also have led to new fear in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have surged to what remains of their homes in the territory’s north after fleeing in the war’s earliest weeks.
The uncertainty, just over halfway into the ceasefire’s six-week first phase, complicates talks on the far more difficult phase. It also jeopardizes the pause in the devastating fighting and the increase in humanitarian aid for Gaza that it has made possible.
Already, there had been concerns that the war would resume at the end of the first phase in early March.
What happened?
Hamas accused Israel of not holding up its end of the deal by initially delaying the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza over an earlier dispute, carrying out strikes across the territory and hindering the entry of humanitarian aid.
The militant group, which quickly reasserted control over Gaza when the ceasefire began on Jan. 19, said the next hostage release would be delayed “until further notice.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called the delay “a complete violation” of the ceasefire agreement, and he instructed the military to be on highest alert. The prime minister’s coordinator for hostages said the government intends to live up to its end of the deal.
A later Hamas statement called the postponement a “warning signal” to Israel and noted that five days remained for mediators – the United States, Qatar and Egypt — to pressure Israel to act. “The door remains open for the exchange to proceed as planned if Israel abides by its obligations,” it said.
There was no immediate public reaction from mediators.
What’s Trump saying?
The Hamas announcement came as U.S. President Donald Trump pressed further on his stunning proposal to remove the Palestinian population from devastated Gaza and have the U.S. take “ownership” of the territory. He told Fox News on Sunday that the Palestinians would not have the right to return.
That deepened the shock among Palestinians, who live with the history of fleeing or being forced from their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war. And it brought new condemnation from Arab nations that have long pressed for an independent Palestinian state.
Trump’s comments contradicted some of his own administration officials who had said the president was only calling for the Palestinians’ temporary relocation.
The Hamas statements on Monday made no mention of Trump’s proposal, which they have rejected multiple times.
Who and what is at stake?
In immediate limbo is the planned release on Saturday of three more Israeli hostages, along with dozens more Palestinian prisoners from Israeli custody.
Such exchanges – five so far in a gradual release of 33 hostages – have been sometimes tense and chaotic acts of trust that have gradually pushed the ceasefire forward, allowing its other measures to fall into place.
But the latest release brought home like no other the bleak and dangerous conditions for those still held in Gaza.
Relatives of the newly released hostages, at times sobbing, have described people being chained or held underground for months and eating half a piece of pita per day. Freed hostages have described going months without showering.
The accounts have put furious new pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to begin the delayed talks on the ceasefire’s second phase, which is meant to see more hostages released and bring a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
“The hostages are in a clear and present danger. Their lives are at risk,” a doctor working with families of hostages, Hagai Levine, warned Monday. “Delaying their release means that some of them will not survive.”
