Tel Aviv [Israel], October 12 (ANI): Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said Israel is ready to receive its hostages “immediately,” as part of an impending ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement mediated by the United States.
The Israel-Hamas conflict has killed at least 67,806 people and wounded 1,70,066 since October 2023. A total of 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, and about 200 were taken captive, according to Al Jazeera.
The Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu spoke with Israel’s Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing, Brigadier-General (Res.) Gal Hirsch, regarding the readiness to receive hostages. In a post on X, the office stated, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just spoken with Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch. Prime Minister Netanyahu: ‘Israel is prepared and ready to immediately receive all of our hostages.’”
Under the deal outlined by U.S. President Donald Trump, Israel will release nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the Israeli hostages and will permit the immediate delivery of “full aid” to Gaza, which has been experiencing severe food shortages and famine in some regions, CBS News reported.
Hours ahead of the anticipated release of the hostages from Gaza under the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement, Israeli President Isaac Herzog addressed crowds gathered at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, calling the agreement “a historic moment” that could reshape the Middle East, despite its painful aspects.
“It’s important to say — this agreement is not simple. It will include some very painful elements, and they already are painful,” Herzog said, without specifying details. “But we understand that this is a historic moment that can also provide a genuine horizon of hope and change for the Middle East.”
Herzog added that Israel is “eagerly awaiting” the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday. “We want to welcome him among us, to thank him from the bottom of our hearts — him and his team — for their tremendous effort, as well as the mediators and everyone who took part,” he said, according to The Times of Israel.
He further expressed hope that the U.S. would help “build the next stages [of the deal] so that we will see real change in Israel and the Middle East — in Gaza and everywhere — that will bring us true change and hope.”
Meanwhile, The Times of Israel, citing its sources, reported that Hamas has informed mediators it is willing to move up the release of hostages in Gaza to Sunday — earlier than the planned Monday deadline — if Israel agrees to free at least two of seven high-profile Palestinian prisoners being sought.
A new round of talks began Sunday morning between Israel and Hamas to finalize the list of prisoners to be released under the first phase of Washington’s Gaza ceasefire agreement. (ANI)
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