The Bibas family was not alerted of the expected release this evening of four of their relatives, and the four will not be released as part of the last portion of the prisoner exchange agreement.
The youngest hostage kidnapped by Hamas is Kfir Bibas, who was just nine months old on October 7 and is now ten months old, having spent more than one-tenth of his life as a hostage in Gaza.
Relatives of the family commented: "We, the family of the hostages, feel great uncertainty right now. The message that the embrace we long for will not happen now leaves us speechless."
"We are happy for all the families who are reunited with their loved ones. We will not end our struggle for the rest of our loved ones to return to Israel. We thank everyone for their support."
Qatar has formally announced that an agreement for a humanitarian pause over the next two days has been reached, alongside the prisoner exchange agreement.