The Japan Times - Israel, Hamas poised for third hostage-prisoner exchange

A fourth exchange is scheduled for the weekend, but Hamas accused Israel on Wednesday of jeopardising the deal by holding up aid deliveries, an allegation Israel dismissed as "fake news".

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified the three Israelis to be released Thursday as Arbel Yehud, Agam Berger and Gadi Moses, adding that five Thai citizens held in Gaza would also be freed.

In a statement Wednesday evening, the Moses family said it had "received with great excitement the wonderful news of our beloved Gadi's return".

The ceasefire that took effect on January 19 hinges on the release of Israeli hostages taken during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack, in exchange for 1,900 people -- mostly Palestinians -- being held in Israeli custody.

Hamas has so far released seven hostages, with 290 prisoners freed in exchange.

Israel is to release 110 prisoners, 30 of them minors, in exchange for the three Israelis to be released on Thursday, the Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group said.

The next swap on Saturday will see three Israeli men released, according to Netanyahu's office.

- Aid trucks -

The truce deal has allowed truckloads of aid into the devastated Gaza Strip, where the war has created a long-running humanitarian crisis.

But two senior Hamas officials accused Israel of slowing down aid deliveries, with one citing items key to Gaza's recovery such as fuel, tents, heavy machinery and other equipment.

"According to the agreement, these materials were supposed to enter during the first week of the ceasefire," one official said.

"We warn that continued delays and failure to address these points will affect the natural progression of the agreement, including the prisoner exchange."

Israel hit back at the accusation, with a spokesman for COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry body that oversees civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories, calling it "totally fake news".

Between Sunday and 1100 GMT on Wednesday, "3,000 trucks entered Gaza", the spokesman said.

"The agreement says it should be 4,200 in seven days," he added.

As the text of the agreement -- mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States -- between the warring parties has not been made public, AFP was not able to verify its terms on aid.

Both Hamas officials said representatives of the group had raised the issue during a meeting with Egyptian officials in Cairo on Wednesday.

- Forced displacement an 'injustice' -

The ceasefire deal is currently in its first 42-day phase, which should see 33 hostages freed.

Next, the parties are due to start discussing a long-term end to the war.

The third and final phase of the deal should see the reconstruction of Gaza as well as the return of the bodies of any remaining dead hostages.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for sealing the agreement despite it taking effect just ahead of his inauguration, and his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who took part in the talks, met with Netanyahu in Israel on Wednesday

Trump has invited Netanyahu to the White House on February 4, according to the premier's office.

After the truce took effect, Trump touted a plan to "clean out" the Gaza Strip, calling for Palestinians to relocate to neighbouring countries such as Egypt or Jordan.

The idea has faced strong backlash from both countries, as well as from European governments.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Wednesday that the forced displacement of Palestinians was an "injustice that we cannot take part in".

Jordan's King Abdullah II, meanwhile, stressed "the need to keep the Palestinians on their land and to guarantee their legitimate rights, in accordance with the Israeli and Palestinian two-state solution".

More than 376,000 displaced Palestinians have gone back to northern Gaza since Israel reopened access earlier this week, according to the UN humanitarian office OCHA, with many returning to little more than rubble.

"My house is destroyed," 33-year-old Mohammed Al-Faleh told AFP. "This morning, we built a small room with two walls made from the remains of our home. There is no cement, so I used mud.

"We are facing great difficulties," he added. "The biggest problem is that there is no water -- all the water wells are destroyed. Food aid is reaching Gaza... but there is no gas or electricity. We bake bread on a fire fuelled by wood and nylon."

T.Ueda--JT