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Hamas reportedly agreed on Friday to release the last American-Israeli hostage, Edan Alexander, along with the bodies of four dual-citizen Israeli hostages, according to Reuters.
The report also noted that Hamas received a proposal from mediators to restart the Gaza ceasefire negotiations, agreeing to its terms.
Alexander is a soldier in the Israeli military who was stationed near the Gaza Strip during the Oct. 7 attacks.
Hamas says it “affirms its complete readiness to initiate negotiations and reach a comprehensive agreement on the issues of the second phase while calling for the occupation (Israel) to fully implement its obligations.”
The first American-Israeli hostage held by Hamas in Gaza was released in late January after more than a year in captivity as part of a ceasefire deal with Israel.
Keith Siegel, 65, was taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023. Others released at the time included French-Israeli citizen Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas, the father of the two youngest hostages, Kfir and Ariel Bibas.
Seven American citizens were held hostage in Gaza, with four dying in captivity.
As part of the first phase of the current ceasefire agreement, Hamas was expected to release 33 hostages over six weeks.
Trump celebrated the release of the first three female hostages the day before his inauguration in a Truth Social post.
“Hostages starting to come out today! Three wonderful young women will be first,” he wrote.
Emily Damari, Romi Gonen and Doron Steinbrecher reunited with their families after being abducted on Oct. 7, 2023, and held for 471 days.
“The three women were the first of the 33 captives expected to be freed during the first phase of the ceasefire agreement with Hamas that went into effect earlier in the day,” JNS reported. “The women were handed over to the Israel Defense Forces by representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross inside the Gaza Strip.”
