Israel says it has received names of 3 hostages to be freed on Feb 15

JERUSALEM – Israel said on Feb 14 that it had received the names of three hostages to be freed by militants this weekend, after a crisis in the ceasefire threatened to plunge Gaza back into war.

The hostages due for release on Feb 15 are Israeli-Russian Sasha Troufanov, Israeli-American Sagui Dekel-Chen and Israeli-Argentinian Yair Horn, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

One of them is being held by Hamas’ militant ally Islamic Jihad, which participated in the Oct 7, 2023, attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.

Israel warned Hamas that it must free three living hostages this weekend or face a resumption of the war, after the group said it would pause releases over what it described as Israeli violations of the Gaza truce.

The Jan 19 ceasefire has been under massive strain since President Donald Trump proposed a US takeover of the territory, under which Gaza’s population of more than two million would be moved to Egypt or Jordan.

Arab countries have come together to reject the plan, and Saudi Arabia on Feb 20 will host the leaders of Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for a summit on the issue.

The releases of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, as agreed under the terms of the truce, have brought much-needed relief to families on both sides of the war, but the emaciated state of the Israeli captives freed last week sparked anger in Israel and beyond.

“The latest release operations reinforce the urgent need for ICRC access to those held hostage,” the International Committee of the Red Cross, which facilitated the exchanges, said in a statement on Feb 14.

“We remain very concerned about the conditions of the hostages.”

Following Hamas’ handover ceremony last week, during which the captives were forced to speak, the ICRC appealed for future handovers to be more private and dignified.

Israeli-American hostage Keith Siegel, who was released in a previous exchange nearly two weeks ago, described mistreatment during his captivity in a video message.

“I am a survivor. I was held for 484 days in unimaginable conditions, every single day felt like it could be my last,” he said.

“I was starved, and I was tortured, both physically and emotionally.”

‘Power games’

Mr Trump, whose proposal to take over Gaza and move its 2.4 million residents to Egypt or Jordan sparked global outcry, warned this week that “hell” would break loose if Hamas failed to release “all” remaining hostages by noon on Feb 15.

If fighting resumes, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said it would not just lead to the “defeat of Hamas and the release of all the hostages”, but also “allow the realisation of US President Trump’s vision for Gaza”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was due in Israel, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to discuss the ceasefire after attending the Munich Security Conference, where he will hold talks on Ukraine.

Mr Katz last week ordered the Israeli army to prepare for “voluntary” departures from Gaza, and the military said it had already begun reinforcing its troops around the territory.

Analyst Mairav Zonszein, of the International Crisis Group, said despite their public disputes, Israel and Hamas were still interested in maintaining the truce and have not “given up on anything yet”.

She said: “They’re just playing power games.”

‘God Almighty?’

Arab countries have put on a rare show of unity in their rejection of Mr Trump’s proposal for Gaza.

After the Riyadh summit, the Arab League will convene in Cairo on Feb 27 to discuss the same issue.

Mr Trump has threatened to cut off a vital aid lifeline to longstanding allies Jordan and Egypt should they refuse to come on board.

Jordan is already home to more than two million Palestinian refugees. More than half of the country’s population of 11 million is of Palestinian origin.

Egypt put forward its own proposal for the reconstruction of Gaza under a framework that would allow for the Palestinians to remain in the territory.

Palestinians in Gaza have also voiced opposition to the plan.

“Who is Trump? Is he God Almighty? The land of Jordan is for Jordanians, and the land of Egypt belongs to Egyptians,” said Gaza City resident Abu Mohamed al-Husari.

“We are here, deeply rooted in Gaza – the resilient, besieged and unbreakable Gaza.”

Hamas’ Oct 7, 2023, attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,211 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, of whom 73 remain in Gaza, including at least 35 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,239 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. AFP