Qatar Announces Deal: Hamas to Release Arbel Yehud and Five Others; Israel to Allow Palestinians' Return to Northern Gaza

Jan 26, 2025, 09:50 PM

Qatar's Foreign Ministry announced that an agreement has been reached for Hamas to release Israeli civilian hostage Arbel Yehud and two other hostages before Friday. According to Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari, Hamas will also release three additional Israeli hostages on Saturday as part of the agreement, providing information on the hostages to be freed in the first phase. In exchange, starting from Monday morning, Israel will allow displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza via the Netzarim corridor. However, Hamas has not yet provided a full list of hostages or their conditions. This development aims to ease tensions and solidify the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.