Hamas says committed to truce amid progress to address Gaza obstacle
GAZA CITY
Hamas announced on Thursday it has agreed to continue implementing the ceasefire deal and will follow through with the release of hostages held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners as per the timeline outlined in the agreement.
The group also said Egyptian and Qatari mediators promised to remove obstacles preventing the continued flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian sources reported progress in efforts to salvage the ceasefire which was plunged into uncertainty after Hamas warned it would not release hostages on Feb. 15, citing Israeli violations.
Israel hit back, saying that if Hamas failed to free captives on schedule, it would resume its war in Gaza.
"We are keen to implement it [the ceasefire] and oblige the occupation to fully abide by it. Mediators are pressuring [Israel] to complete the full implementation of the agreement, oblige the occupation to abide by the humanitarian protocol, and resume the exchange process on Feb. 15," Hamas spokesman Abdel Latif al-Qanou said.
A Palestinian source said mediators had obtained from Israel a "promise... to put in place a humanitarian protocol starting from this morning.”
Egyptian state-linked media said construction equipment, including bulldozers and trucks carrying mobile homes, was ready to enter Gaza from Egypt, a claim later denied by Israel.
U.S. President Donald Trump had warned that "hell" would break loose if the Palestinian militant group failed to release "all" the hostages by noon on Feb. 15.
If fighting resumes, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said, "the new Gaza war... will not end without the defeat of Hamas and the release of all the hostages."
"It will also allow the realization of U.S. President Trump's vision for Gaza," he added.
The hints of progress came as mediators Qatar and Egypt pushed to salvage the ceasefire agreement that came into effect last month, while Hamas said its top negotiator was in Cairo.
The truce, currently in its first phase, has seen Israeli captives released in small groups in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody.
