Israel postponed the start of an agreement with Hamas until it receives a list of hostages

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip can be implemented only when Israel receives a list of released hostages from the Palestinian movement Hamas. This was reported on January 19 by the Israeli newspaper The Times of Israel with reference to the office of the head of the government.

The agreement was to take effect at 9:30 Moscow time, but according to Netanyahu, Israel has yet to receive a list of hostages to be released from Hamas.

The Palestinian movement, for its part, said the delay in providing the list was due to technical reasons. The names of the hostages to be released today were expected as early as Saturday evening, January 18, as the deal calls for the names to be provided 24 hours before the release.

And last I'll show you: why Israel delayed the cabinet meeting on Gaza

More than 1,500 Palestinians may be released after ceasefire

Netanyahu said the day before that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) could resume fighting in the Gaza Strip if necessary. He promised that the return to fighting, if necessary, would be carried out by the IDF with even greater force.

Theceasefire in the Gaza Strip was to begin on the morning of January 19, as agreed upon by both sides and mediators. The Israeli government approved the agreement with the Palestinian Hamas movement on January 17 following a six-hour meeting.

The Gaza ceasefire agreement was announced on January 15. The next day, the Ministry of Defense and the IDF began preparations to implement the agreement. In particular, the State Defense Ministry's Directorate of Checkpoints and the Design Department will be involved in the implementation of the deal in order to speed up logistics.

The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of October 7, 2023, when Hamas subjected Israel's territory to a massive rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. On the same day, Israel began retaliatory strikes.