ISRAELI’S ambassador to the US has said that Hamas could release a number of hostages “in coming days”.
Around 240 hostages were taken during Hamas’s crossing into Israel on October 7.
Israel’s ambassador to the US, Michael Herzog, has now said he hopes a significant number of hostages could be released by Hamas “in coming days”.
The comments come after Qatar’s prime minister said only “very minor” details remained in a deal between Israel and Hamas.
Scotland’s First Minister has tabled a motion on Gaza to be debated in Holyrood as he called on Scottish Labour to “stand firm” and back a ceasefire.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al Thani said mainly “practical and logistical” issues remained, while a White House official said the “very complicated, very sensitive” negotiations were making progress.
It was previously reported by Reuters that moderators from Qatar had been seeking a deal between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 hostages in exchange for a three-day ceasefire which would help boost emergency aid shipments to civilians in Gaza.
The latest figures suggest that more than two-third of Gaza’s population of around 2.3 million have fled their homes.
Gaza’s Hamas-run government has said at least 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardments, with another 2700 reported missing and believed to have been buried under rubble.
The civilian death toll in Gaza was “staggering and unacceptable,” UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said as he appealed again on Sunday for a humanitarian ceasefire.
