The location at an overview
Planned hostage of hostages nourishes hope for Gaza deal
Shortly before his Middle East trip, US President Trump cheered “monumental news”. In fact, there is a sign of hope in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. But what follows?
The intermediaries in the conflict between Israel and Hamas hope that the announced release of an American hostage hopes for significant progress in the struggle for an end to the Gaza War. The Israeli soldier Edan Alexander, kidnapped in October 2023, is the last living hostage with US citizenship, which is still captured in the Gaza Strip. According to the 21-year-old dual state, Islamist Hamas wants to release the 21-year-old dual state at the latest on Tuesday-in keeping with the beginning of the trip abroad by US President Donald Trump to the Middle East.
Trump spoke of a “monumental news” and gesture of accommodation towards the USA and the other intermediaries Qatar and Egypt. “Hopefully this is the first of the last necessary steps on the way to the end of this brutal conflict,” he wrote on the Truth Social online platform. Ultimately, all living kidnapped and remains of already killed hostages would have to be handed over.
The governments of Katar and Egypt also spoke in a joint message of a “gesture of goodwill”. It is another step on the way to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the release of prisoners and prisoners and the unhindered delivery of humanitarian auxiliary goods into the coastal area, which was largely destroyed.
Trump visits Arab states – but not Israel
Trump will only visit Saudi Arabia and then Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from Tuesday to Thursday – but not Israel, the most traditionally important ally in the United States in the Middle East. The Israeli government stated that it regarded the planned release of Alexander as a gesture of Hamas towards the Americans, but does not see any concessions.
Hamas, in turn, wants to understand the step as part of her efforts to achieve a further agreement. Ultimately, the Palestinian terrorist organization wants to reach a resumption of aid deliveries in the Gaza Strip and an end to the extremely lost war. Alexander will be released within 48 hours, said a rank-high Hamas member of the German Press Agency.
In Israel, his family should then be allowed to receive him after a long fear. Trump’s hostage officer Adam Boehler published a photo of himself and Alexander’s mother on board an aircraft.
One and a half years hostage – and tens of thousands of deaths
The young soldier served because of his double citizenship in the Israeli military when Islamist terrorists kidnapped him in the Gaza Strip with 249 other people from Israel a year and a half ago. Around 1,200 people were killed in the October massacre, which triggered Israel’s bombing and soil offensive in Gaza. Since then, almost 53,000 people have been killed in the coastal area – regardless of that is hardly to be checked.
A total of at least 21, possibly also 24 living hostages, are said to be in the Gaza Strip. With 35 kidnapped, however, it is firmly assumed that they are already dead – including four US citizens.
Free hostages have repeatedly reported on the brutal methods of their tormentors. Like others, Alexander is said to have been chained and tortured at times. In November 2024, Hamas published a video in which he cries uninhibitedly and calls Trump to stand up for negotiations on the release of the hostages.
Israel’s government announced that the release of Alexander, which has not been linked to any conditions, should probably lead to negotiations on an agreement, the framework of which the Israeli side had accepted a long time ago – as the US government presented it. Two months ago, Hamas had proposed to leave the dual national as part of a deal. At that time, the Israeli government described the offer as insufficient.
Israel threatens to expand the Gaza offensive
According to the newspaper “Jerusalem Post”, an expansion of the Gaza offensive is still a threat. If Hamas refuses to take a ceasefire agreement that provides for the immediate release of ten hostages, the Israeli military will make its threats come true, it said, citing informed circles.
“Edans release must be part of a greater agreement for the return of all 59 hostages,” said the hosts for the hosts. “Nobody can be left behind.”
dpa
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
