Israel set to release 20 hostages from Gaza in coming days
Photo: Israel prepares to return 20 hostages from Gaza (Getty Images)
Israeli official sources report that in the coming days—Sunday or Monday—the release of 20 Israeli hostages held in Gaza is expected, according to Reuters.
Israeli sources say that the release of 20 Israeli hostages from Gaza is expected on Sunday or Monday. Currently, 48 people remain in captivity, of whom, according to authorities, 20 are still alive.
Most of the other hostages have already been rescued: some during exchanges for Palestinian prisoners during two ceasefires—in November 2023 and early 2025—and others through special rescue operations by Israeli forces.
In addition, Israeli forces have returned 59 bodies of hostages who either died before delivery to Gaza or died in captivity.
Plan for ending the war in the Gaza Strip
It is worth noting that last week, US President Donald Trump proposed a 20-point settlement plan for the Gaza Strip.
The document provides for the creation of an international "Peace Council," which will oversee a "technocratic, apolitical Palestinian committee" responsible for the day-to-day administration of Gaza. The Council will be headed by Trump himself and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.
On October 6, indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas began in Egypt, mediated by representatives from Egypt, the US, and Qatar.
Already on October 8, Trump announced that the parties had signed the first phase of his peace plan. According to it, soon all hostages will be released, and Israel will withdraw its troops to an agreed line.
It is also worth noting that Trump himself stated that within the first phase of the peace agreement reached between Israel and Hamas, the hostages are likely to be released on Monday.
