Hamas delays second release of hostages until Israel allows aid into northern Gaza

The armed wing of Hamas said Saturday it was delaying the handover of a second group of hostages due to be released under a truce deal until Israel “adheres to the terms of the agreement.”

The entry of humanitarian aid to the north of the Gaza Strip and the selection criteria for the liberation of prisoners were the issues in question, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement.

An Israeli official confirmed to AFP the hostages had not yet been handed over to the Red Cross in the Gaza Strip.

Osama Hamdan, the Hamas representative in Lebanon, told the Lebanon-based Al Mayadeen TV channel that the suspension was due to violations of the truce committed by Israel “linked to aid (entering Gaza), in addition to shootings and the rising death toll ... Some of (these violations) happened yesterday, and repeated today,” Hamdan said.

There was no immediate comment from the ICRC on whether the release of hostages and detainees had been delayed.

A Hamas source had told AFP that the handover of 14 hostages to the Red Cross had begun, then said the transfer process had been halted.

In response, an Israeli military spokesperson told French television channel BFM that Israel fully respected the truce.

“Israel has not violated the agreement,” an Israeli source also told AFP.

Israeli authorities earlier said that 14 hostages being held in the Gaza Strip following the Hamas attacks on October 7 would be released on Saturday, as well as 42 Palestinian prisoners, on the second day of a truce deal.

Prison authorities said 42 prisoners -- both male and female -- would be freed under the terms of the agreement, which mandates exchanges at a ratio of three to one, and an Israeli official source said 14 hostages would be handed over.

Egypt has received a list from Hamas of 14 hostages to be released on Saturday, Reuters reported earlier on Saturday, citing security sources.