Five Argentine-Israeli women and children are among the hostages released by militant group Hamas on Monday, as the exchanges are set to continue for two more days.
They are Karina Engelbert and her daughters Mika (18) and Yuval (11), as well as twins Yuli and Emma Cunio, both three-years-old. They all lived in kibbutz Nir Oz, one of the communities attacked by Hamas militants on October 7, when they killed 1,200 people and took about 240 hostages, beginning the war that has been raging ever since.
The Cunio twins are family members of Danielle Aloni, who was also kidnapped along with her daughter Emilia and released on the first day of exchanges. There are also six Thai citizens among the released on Monday.
Hamas, on its end, announced it has received the list of Palestinian detainees to be released. It's comprised of three women and 30 teenagers under 19-years-old.
There are still 11 Argentines held captive in Gaza, among then 10-month-old baby Kfir Bibas, the youngest hostage, among with his parents Shiri and Yarden and his 4-year-old brother Ariel. Different media outlets have reported there are hostages who meet the criteria to be released but are not being kept by Hamas, but rather other terrorist organizations such as the Islamic Jihad.
That possibility could become evident if the exchanges continue during the next days. On Monday, Qatar confirmed that Israel and Hamas agreed to extend the truce in Gaza, which was set to expire on Tuesday, for two more days.
Hours before the deadlines, the parties confirmed two more exchanges on Tuesday and Wednesday. Same as the previous days, the ratio will be three Palestinian detainees for every Israeli held in Gaza.
Hamas confirmed in a statement "that an agreement has been reached with the brothers in Qatar and Egypt for an extension of the temporary humanitarian pause for an additional two days, with the same conditions as the previous truce."
The White House welcomed the agreement to extend the truce. "We would of course hope to see the pause extended further, and that will depend upon Hamas continuing to release hostages," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned in several opportunities about the intention of resuming the offensive as soon as the truce ends. "We continue until the end -- until victory," Netanyahu said in Gaza on Sunday. His presence there marked the first visit by an Israeli premier since 2005.
© 2023 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
