A senior Hamas official on Monday disclosed to the BBC a list of 34 hostages the terrorist group claims it is prepared to release as part of the initial phase of a potential ceasefire deal with Israel. The fate of many of the individuals on the list, however, remains uncertain.
The group includes 10 women, 11 elderly men ranging in age from 50 to 85 years, and several young children, some of whom Hamas claims had been killed in an Israeli airstrike. The list also includes individuals Hamas describes as being in poor health.
The Saudi news outlet Asharq Al Awsat published a list of the 34 hostages who could potentially be released in the initial phase of a proposed agreement with Hamas. The list does not clarify which individuals are still alive. Hamas took 251 hostages on October 7, 2023, with 96 believed to remain in Gaza. According to the IDF, 34 of those hostages are presumed dead.
The Prime Minister’s Office on Monday morning announced: “The list of hostages that has been published in the media was not provided to Israel by Hamas but was originally given by Israel to the mediators in July 2024. As of yet, Israel has not received any confirmation or comment from Hamas regarding the status of the hostages appearing on the list. Israel will continue to act relentlessly for the return of all of our hostages.”
A Hamas official told Reuters that any agreement to release Israeli hostages would hinge on securing an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and establishing a permanent ceasefire to end the war.
“However, until now, the ‘occupation’ continues to be obstinate over an agreement on the issues of the ceasefire and withdrawal, and has made no step forward,” the official said.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a campaign group comprising relatives of Hamas hostages, issued the following statement:
“The families of the hostages are shaken and upset by the list published this morning. We call on the media and the public to show sensitivity and responsibility regarding the publication of this and other such things until a deal is signed, and also during it.
“The time is ripe for a comprehensive agreement that will return all the hostages – the living for healing, and the murdered and fallen for a proper burial. We are leaving no one behind.”
