Hamas says it will release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who is believed to be the last living captive with US nationality in Gaza, as a part of efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement.

The decision comes ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit to the Middle East on Tuesday. Hamas said it was also intended to facilitate a deal for the entry of humanitarian aid. Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade for 70 days.

Earlier a senior Hamas official told the BBC that the Palestinian armed group was holding direct negotiations with a US administration official in Qatar.

The Israeli prime minister’s office said it had been informed by the US of the Hamas intention to release Alexander.

A senior Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations told the BBC that Hamas’s announcement was intended as a goodwill gesture before Trump’s arrival.

He said another meeting between Hamas and the mediators was scheduled for early Monday morning to finalise the process of Edan’s release, which would require a temporary halt to Israeli military activity and a suspension of aerial operations during the handover.

President Trump confirmed Alexander’s release in a post on Truth Social, calling it “monumental news” and “a step taken in good faith”.

Born in Tel Aviv but raised in New Jersey, 21-year-old Alexander was serving in an elite infantry unit on the border with Gaza when he was captured by Hamas militants during the 7 October attack.

Of the 251 hostages taken during Hamas’s 2023 attack, 59 remain in the enclave, up to 24 of whom are believed to be alive. Five of the hostages in Gaza are believed to be US citizens and Alexander was thought to be the only one still alive.

In its statement, Hamas said the release was part of efforts to achieve a ceasefire and allow food, medicine and other supplies into Gaza - which has been under a complete blockade by Israel for 70 days. The group said it wanted to reach a final agreement to end the war.

The Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement that it had been informed by the US of the Hamas intention to release Alexander “as a gesture towards the Americans” and that the move was expected to lead to negotiations on further hostages.

Israel’s policy was that negotiations would be conducted “under fire, based on the commitment to achieve all of the objectives of the war”, it added.

The Families and Missing Families Forum campaign group said Alexander’s release “must mark the beginning of a comprehensive agreement that will secure the freedom of all remaining hostages”.

They said President Trump had “given the families of all the hostages hope” and urged Netanyahu to now “bring everyone back”.

Hamas has in the past said it will only agree to a deal that includes the end of the war, something that has been repeatedly rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The talks between Hamas and the US are taking place amid multiple reports suggesting growing frustration in the Trump administration with Netanyahu’s position. The prime minister is also under pressure at home, with many accusing him of prolonging the war for political purposes.

President Donald Trump arrives in the Middle East on Tuesday, and Israel has vowed to expand its military offensive against Hamas if no deal is reached by the end of his visit.

Israeli officials have said the plans for their expanded offensive include seizing all of the territory indefinitely, forcibly displacing Palestinians to the south, and taking over aid distribution with private companies despite opposition from the UN and its humanitarian partners, who say they will not co-operate because it appears to “weaponise” aid.

Israel has already blocked the entry of all food, medication and other humanitarian supplies into Gaza for 70 days, which aid agencies say amounts to a policy of starvation and could be a war crime, and renewed its aerial bombardment and other military operations there in mid-March, which have since killed 2,720 Palestinians according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Since the beginning of the year, according to the UN, about 10,000 cases of acute malnutrition among children have been identified. Food prices have rocketed by as much as 1,400%.

The war was triggered by the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, which saw about 1,200 people killed and more than 250 taken hostage. Some 59 are still held captive, up to 24 of whom are believed to be alive.

Israel’s military campaign has killed 52,829 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Source: BBC
--Agencies