Hamas names three captives set for release on Saturday in exchange for 369 Palestinian prisoners

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has named three Israeli captives who are set to be released on Saturday as part of the sixth round of exchange under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal.

Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said in a brief statement on Friday that Alexander “Sasha” Trufanov, Sagui Dekel-Chen and Yair Horn will be released.

The armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), al-Quds Brigades, which was holding Alexander Trufanov, confirmed that it will release him.

A statement from Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel accepted the list of names it received from Qatari and Egyptian mediators.

In return, 369 Palestinian prisoners will be released by the Israeli regime on Saturday.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office, they include 36 prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment and 333 prisoners from Gaza who were detained without any charges after the October 7, 2023 Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.

The truce that came into effect on January 19 has largely halted more than 15 months of genocide and seen Israeli captives released in batches in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli prisons.

But the deal has come under increasing strain with Hamas blaming Israel for failing to meet its commitments under the agreement, including on aid, and citing the death of three Gazans at the weekend in fresh attacks.

Hamas says to conduct captive-prisoner exchange as planned if Israel honors commitments

Hamas has reaffirmed its commitment to proceed with the sixth phase of captives-prisoner exchange if Israel honors its commitments.

Hamas had warned that the release of the Israeli captives could be delayed due to violations of the ceasefire by the Israeli military.

Later, it reaffirmed that it would proceed with the sixth phase of the exchange, as mediators have secured a commitment from the Israeli regime to implement a humanitarian protocol.

The regime's genocidal war on Gaza claimed the lives of at least 48,239 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 111,676 others.

The regime approved the ceasefire after falling short of realizing any of its wartime objectives, including freeing the captives, “eliminating” Hamas, and causing forced displacement of Gaza’s entire population to neighboring Egypt.

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