The release of certain Israeli captives held by Hamas militants is “very close,” US President Joe Biden told reporters on Tuesday. Israeli, American, and Palestinian sources have all stated that an agreement is imminent in the last 24 hours.
During their October 7 assault on Israel, Hamas fighters abducted approximately 240 hostages to Gaza, and have since freed only four of these captives. The wellbeing of the hostages has been a major issue for the Israeli public, who are concerned that the prisoners may be hurt during the continuing air and ground assault in the enclave, or executed in reaction to the Israeli attacks.
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Biden said that ongoing talks to free these hostages may soon pay off.
“We are now very close, very close,” he said. “We could bring some of these hostages home very soon, but I don’t want to get into the details of things because nothing is done until it’s done.”
“We’ve been working on this intensively for weeks, as you all know,” Biden added, adding that US officials have “been in the region shuttling between capitals.”
“Things are looking good at the moment,” Biden said.
Multiple US news agencies broke the news of an anticipated agreement on Sunday and Monday, with Axios stating that the arrangement would see Hamas free 50 women and children in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian inmates detained in Israeli jails. This exchange would purportedly take place during a four-day ceasefire to allow humanitarian supplies into Gaza, followed by a second swap of 50 Israeli captives for 150 Palestinians.
On Tuesday, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh told Reuters that his organisation was “close to reaching a truce agreement” with Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that “we are making progress” on the agreement and that he hoped “there will be good news soon.”
According to Netanyahu’s office, the prime minister will convene with his military cabinet on Tuesday night. According to Israeli media, the cabinet is anticipated to approve the hostage swap during this meeting, which means that the actual transfer could take place 24 hours later.
A spokeswoman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry announced on X (previously Twitter) on Tuesday that “we are now at the closest point we have ever been in reaching an agreement.”
