Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told his American counterpart Lloyd Austin this Wednesday that there was currently “a chance” of an agreement for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023. .
A glimmer of hope for families. “There is currently a chance for a new agreement,” the Israeli defense minister told his American counterpart in a phone call, according to a statement from his office. “We hope for the release of all hostages, including American citizens,” he added.
For more than a year, the United States, Egypt and Qatar have been trying to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage release agreement between Israel and the Hamas terrorist organization.
This Monday, a source close to Hamas told AFP that the movement had “informed the Egyptian Minister of Intelligence of its efforts to collect information” on the living Israeli hostages. This source specified that Hamas had prepared a list of hostages still alive.
“If Israel accepts the Egyptian proposal, I believe the exchange agreement will be ready to be implemented,” the source added.
The election of Donald Trump positive for negotiations
Another promising sign came from Qatar, which said on Saturday that the November election of US President Donald Trump, who will take office next January, had created new “momentum” for negotiations.
At the same time, a source close to the Hamas delegation said that Turkey, along with Egypt and Qatar, had “made commendable efforts to end the war” and that a new round of negotiations could soon to start.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also gave a sign of hope by telling the hostage families that Israel’s military successes against Hezbollah, Lebanon and Hamas would facilitate negotiations for their release. .
The war in the Gaza Strip was triggered by the unprecedented attack by Hamas in Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the death of 1,208 people on the Israeli side, the majority civilians, according to an AFP count. based on official data and including hostages who died or were killed in captivity in the Gaza Strip.
That day, 251 people were kidnapped on Israeli soil. A total of 96 are still held hostage in Gaza, 34 of whom have been declared dead by the army. Among the hostages are seven Israeli-American citizens, three of whom are believed to be alive, according to the Hostage Forum.
