prisoner swap

WSJ: As few as 50 hostages may still be alive

Sources say up to 66 of the hostages still in Gaza may be dead, possibly only 50 still alive.

Report: Hamas rejected hostage deal

Hamas will announce that it rejects Israeli offer for ceasefire-prisoner swap deal, Saudi newspaper reports.

Arab report: Israel to agree to prisoner swap deal

Prisoner swap deal could take effect next week, if all goes as planned; Egypt worries that Israel will refuse to commit to a ceasefire.

'No section for ending war':

Netanyahu and Ben Gvir discuss Biden proposal

PM Netanyahu to present Min. Itamar Ben Gvir with draft of Biden ceasefire proposal, sources say.

Prisoner swap deal:

Hamas demanding US guarantees, clarity on ceasefire

Hamas will not agree to any prisoner swap deal which does not guarantee a permanent ceasefire, is demanding US provide guarantees that Israel will hold fire.

Hostages' families demand:

Hamas must present list of living hostages prior to any deal

Hamas must present list of living hostages and Red Cross must be allowed to treat hostages, if there is to be a prisoner swap deal, Tikva Forum for hostages' families says.

Israel: No ceasefire without a deal

'Yahya Sinwar is trying to create a ceasefire by force, and it will not happen,' official familiar with prisoner swap negotiations tells Ynet.

Report:

Egypt banking on Israeli internal pressure forcing a ceasefire

Egypt does not believe Israel is interested in ending the war, has proposals which will increase diplomatic pressure on Israel, Al Akhbar report says.

Father of hostage reveals:

Yesh Atid MK admitted Netanyahu isn't preventing a hostage swap

Zvika Mor, father of hostage Eitan Mor, reveals admission by Yesh Atid's MK Meir Cohen that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not preventing a prisoner swap deal from taking place.

Qatar: Significant differences between Israel and Hamas

Israel has not been clear about how to end the war, causing negotiations to freeze, Qatari Pres. Al Thani claims.

Israeli official: Hamas proposal is unacceptable

New proposal includes demand for Israel to release re-arrested 'Shalit deal' terrorists; senior Israeli official tells Reuters that Hamas' counteroffer to the Egyptian proposal is unacceptable to Israel, and Israel will rethink its next steps.

'Significant discrepancies'

These are the changes Hamas made in its new offer

The new hostage deal proposal would free Hamas of its commitment to release 33 living women, children, elderly, and ailing hostages, and allow dead hostages to be released in their place.

Israeli officials:

US knew about changes to ceasefire deal - but didn't brief Israel

'The feeling is that Israel got played' by the US and mediators during the latest round of negotiations, Israeli officials tell journalist Barak Ravid.

US officials: Hamas counteroffer has 'minor wording changes'

Changes to approved ceasefire-prisoner swap deal were made by Arab negotiators in consultation with CIA chief; first stage of hostage release would include less than 33 living hostages, report says.

Negotiations ongoing

Israeli source: If Hamas agrees to deal, Rafah evacuation ends

Evacuation of Rafah pressures Hamas to agree to proposed prisoner swap deal, Israel will end evacuation if Hamas caves, diplomatic source says.

PM's Office responds:

Hamas, not Netanyahu, torpedoed hostage deal talks

'Hamas torpedoed the deal, with its refusal to budge on conditions that no Israeli government would accept,' Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu says, negating words of Hamas' Moussa Abu Marzouk and the Israeli official who backed him.

Hamas official claims: Netanyahu's statements caused deal to fail

Moussa Abu Marzouk, Hamas official who claimed civilians were 'exempt' from the Oct. 7 massacre, claims to NYT that the impasse in negotiations was caused by PM Netanyahu's promise to topple Hamas battalions in Rafah. Israeli official offers support to Abu Marzouk's claims.

Israeli sources:

If Hamas insists on remaining in power - there will be no deal

Israel may accept a deal that ends the war - if Hamas leaders agree to exile from Gaza, report says.

Report: Hamas agreed to Egyptian ceasefire proposal

Asharq Al-Awsat claims Israel removed opposition to releasing certain terrorists, US guaranteed full withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.

Families of hostages:

'Every citizen needs to know: 'Never Again' is now'

On the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, families of hostages push Israeli government to approve a prisoner swap deal with Hamas - no matter what the price.

Are Israel and Hamas nearing a deal?

Senior sources say Israeli delegation will set out 'only if there is a response from Hamas that shows there is potential for negotiations.'

Diplomatic source: 'A deal will mean the end of the war'

If the US promises in Israel's name that the war with Hamas will not resume following a ceasefire-prisoner swap deal, Israel will be forced into a clash with the US - or forced to lose the war, source warns.

Arab reports: Egypt extracted promise to delay Rafah operation

While Hamas' response to the Egyptian-proposed ceasefire-prisoner swap deal will almost certainly be negative, Israel has promised to delay an operation in Rafah, sources say.

Report:

Prisoner swap agreement doesn't include IDF withdrawal from Gaza

Hamas source says terror group 'still examining proposal for a ceasefire; Blinken's words are an attempt to pressure Hamas.'

Hamas sources:

Egyptian proposal is the best presented so far

Arab reports detail compromises Israel agreed to make in deal which would see a ceasefire in exchange for hostages' release.

Report:

Hamas response to prisoner swap deal expected Wednesday evening

Hamas leadership in Gaza passes its response to Hamas leadership abroad; Israeli delegation won't take off for Cairo yet.

Negotiations to free hostages:

Qatar promised to remove Hamas leaders - and didn't do it

Qatar should have announced that if Hamas did not progress towards prisoner swap deal, its leaders would be removed from Doha - but failed to keep its commitment, or to explain the decision to backtrack.

Israeli source to CNN:

'For every freed hostage - one day of ceasefire'

Hamas still examining Egyptian proposal for ceasefire, hostage swap deal, which would see 33 hostages released in exchange for a cessation of fighting in Gaza.

Min. Chikli: I'll oppose a deal, we can't stop the war

Diaspora Min. Amichai Chikli promises to oppose the proposed prisoner swap deal, which includes a complete cessation of the war against Hamas.

Report:

New hostage deal forces significant compromises on Israel's part

Journalist Barak Ravid reports that the new offer for a prisoner swap deal includes significant compromises from Israel, including expression of willingness to discuss ending the war in Gaza.

Hamas official reveals: Military arm holding 30 IDF soldiers

Captive soldiers are 'in high-security locations, impossible to reach under any circumstances,' Hamas official tells media outlet.

Hamas now offering to release just 20 hostages

Senior official says after Hamas rejected the latest ceasefire proposals, it offered to release half the number of hostages while demanding Israel free murderers.

Report:

Hamas unsure of whether it has 40 live hostages for prisoner swap

Does Hamas have enough living hostages to make a deal with Israel? Maybe not.

Hamas insisting on assurance that war will end

Hamas terror group unafraid and prepared for Israeli operation in Gaza, plans to reject hostage deal due to insistence on permanent ceasefire, complete withdrawal of IDF from Gaza, Al Akhbar says.

Haredi MK:

Hostage deal? 'We're trying not to get into that'

MK Pindrus says his party is not part of the bodies charged with making decisions on a prisoner swap.

Proposal:

Condition negotiations on US commitment to support Rafah op.

Diplomatic-Security Cabinet to discuss proposal which would condition progress in hostage deal negotiations on a US commitment to support Israel's operation in Rafah.

Hamas: No progress on talks for hostage deal

Hamas official claims 'no change' in Israel's position, insists there will be 'no flexibility' over terror group's 'main demands,' Reuters reports.

Report:

US promised Egypt: No Rafah op before mid-May

Reports say Israel promised not to conduct Rafah ground operation before May, has changed its position on number, identities, of terrorists to be released in prisoner swap.

Mediators must act vigorously, push Hamas to prisoner swap

Israeli negotiating team formulated updated prisoner swap proposal, mediators must take 'vigorous action regarding Hamas' to bring a deal to fruition, Prime Minister's Office says.

Report:

Israel agrees to swap terrorists for soldiers' bodies

Sources say Israel agreed to release re-arrested 'Shalit deal' terrorists in exchange for the bodies of IDF soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, who fell in 2014's Operation Protective Edge.

'Alive or dead'

Herzog: We must get to Sinwar to free the hostages

'We must get to Sinwar - either alive or dead - so that we can see the hostages back home,' Israel's Pres. Herzog says.

Hamas' ultimate goal:

A forced ceasefire, without a hostage deal

UN Security Council resolution 'will isolate the State of Israel even more,' Israel's response to prisoner swap proposal 'does not answer any of the basic demands,' Hamas officials say.

Israeli official claims:

700 terrorists in exchange for 40 hostages

Israeli official says Israel agreed to release 100 terrorists serving life sentences in exchange for less than one-third of the hostages still in Gaza.

Hamas source claims negotiations for ceasefire collapsed

'Hamas position is stable, and it will never agree to accept the agreement Tel Aviv has put forward in a surrender deal,' source says.

Israel clarifies: No breakthrough on prisoner swap

Israeli delegation agrees to US-proposed compromise on ratio of terrorists to hostages to be released in prisoner swap.

Rally for hostages: 'They won't return without a deal'

Released hostages Adina Moshe speaks at rally for hostages' release, claims PM Netanyahu 'abandoned' her.

New details emerge on potential hostage swap

Israel agreed to allow residents of northern Gaza to return home as part of prisoner swap deal, report claims.

Report:

Sinwar now managing hostage deal negotiations

Hamas leaders abroad have no authority to make decisions, 'every comma, every period, will take 24-36 hours,' source says.

Report:

CIA chief held secret Cairo meeting last week

CIA chief William Burns paid secret visit to Cairo before meeting with Mossad chief David Barnea, report says.

Mossad:

'Hamas uninterested in deal, aims to ignite region'

Mossad chief David Barnea meets CIA chief William Burns, in attempt to advance prisoner swap deal, free hostages.

Arab report claims:

Prisoner swap negotiations stalled because of Israel

Negotiations for prisoner swap stalled after Israel insisted on hostage release happening first, Arab report claims.

Report:

Hamas won't compromise on archterrorist's release

Jordanian news outlet says Hamas won't compromise on Marwan Barghouti's release, complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Source:

Sinwar prefers condemnation of Israel over Gazans

Hamas decided not to provide any details on two central issues: an updated list of hostages, and the number of terrorists to be released in any prisoner swap deal, source says.

Negotiations crisis:

Israel won't send delegation to Cairo

Representatives of Qatar, the US, and the Hamas terror group arrive in Cairo to negotiate a prisoner swap; following Hamas' partial response, Israel announces that it will not send a representative to the talks.

US official on hostage deal: Ball is in Hamas' court

Israel has agreed to hostage deal, progress on deal and ceasefire now depend on Hamas' agreement, US official says.

Former Amb. Friedman:

'Biden committed negotiating malpractice'

Former ambassador David Friedman denounced US President Joe Biden's ice cream shop talk about the hostage negotiations.

Report: Hamas examining proposed prisoner swap deal

Second stage of hostage deal to be negotiated separately from first stage; first stage to see release of just 40 hostages.

Lapid:

We'll provide a security net for a hostage deal

Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid says Yesh Atid won't join emergency government, but may provide government with security net for hostage deal - under certain conditions.

Watch:

Biden eats ice cream while discussing hostages

US Pres. Biden is asked about hostage deal - while eating ice cream. 'National Security Adviser tells me that we're close.'

Cabinet to decide:

Merchandise to northern Gaza? Only as part of a deal

Harsh criticism leads War Cabinet to rescind decision to approve humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, instead tying it to a prisoner swap deal.