Hamas cancels all hostage releases until further notice

Hamas has announced it is suspending all Gaza hostage releases until further notice.

The terrorist group blames Israel for violating the ceasefire agreement by delaying the return of displaced people and blocking aid and supplies from reaching the Gaza Strip.

Announcing the cancellation of any further releases of hostages via the group’s official Telegram account on Monday, the group said: “During the past three weeks, the resistance leadership has monitored the enemy’s violations and failure to abide by the terms of the agreement.”

The violations, the group claim: include “delaying the return of displaced people to the northern Gaza Strip, targeting them with shelling and gunfire in various areas of the Gaza Strip, and not allowing relief supplies of all kinds to enter as agreed upon, while the resistance has implemented all its obligations.

“Accordingly, the handover of the Zionist prisoners who were scheduled to be released next Saturday, February 15, 2025, will be postponed until further notice and until the occupation commits to and compensates for the entitlements of the past weeks retroactively.”

Hamas said it “affirms our commitment” to the agreement’s terms “as long as the occupation commits to them.”

Defence Minister Israel Katz condemned Hamas’s decision to delay the release of Israeli hostages, calling it an “outright violation of the ceasefire.”

He instructed the IDF to maintain the highest level of alert for any developments in Gaza and to protect Israeli border communities. “We will not return to the reality of October 7,” he said.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum says it has urgently appealed to mediating countries to help save the agreement.

In a statement posted on X, the group said: “We stand with the Israeli government and encourage maintaining the conditions that will ensure the successful continuation of the agreement, leading to the safe return of our 76 brothers and sisters.”

“Recent evidence from those released, as well as the shocking conditions of the hostages released last Saturday, leaves no room for doubt – time is of the essence, and all hostages must be urgently rescued from his horrific situation.”

The internationally brokered hostage-prisoner exchange agreement was reached between Hamas and Israel on January 15. The deal has so far led to the release of 21 hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, many of whom are incarcerated for being involved in murderous attacks on Israeli civilians.

Of the 251 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, 73 are still held in Gaza, of which 34 are confirmed by the IDF to be dead.

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