Hamas says no Gaza ceasefire talks unless Israel releases prisoners

Hamas says talks with Israel astir further steps successful the Gaza ceasefire woody are conditional connected Palestinian prisoners being freed arsenic agreed.

Israel said connected Sunday it was delaying the merchandise of much than 600 Palestinians successful instrumentality for six surviving and 4 dormant hostages who had been freed, accusing Hamas of repeated violations including "humiliating" handover ceremonies.

A elder Hamas authoritative said the determination exposed the full statement to "grave danger" and called connected mediators, particularly the US, to unit Israel.

The deal's archetypal signifier and impermanent six-week truce is acceptable to expire connected Saturday but indirect negotiations connected the 2nd signifier and an extremity to the warfare person not yet begun.

UN Secretary General António Guterres warned that the ceasefire was "precarious" and that a resumption of hostilities indispensable beryllium avoided astatine each costs.

He besides called for the "dignified merchandise of each remaining hostages".

On Saturday - the commencement of the sixth and last week of the ceasefire deal's archetypal signifier - Hamas released six surviving Israeli hostages.

As with galore of the erstwhile handovers, 5 of them were led onto stages beside equipped fighters earlier being transferred to the Red Cross and past taken to Israel.

Later, Hamas posted a video of 2 different hostages successful a conveyance watching 1 of the handover ceremonies and appearing to plead with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to get them retired too. A forum representing the hostages' families condemned the video arsenic a "sickening show of cruelty".

There was already fury successful Israel aft Hamas returned the bodies of 4 hostages earlier successful the week, including those of Shiri Bibas and her 2 young sons Ariel and Kfir, who were abducted during the 7 October 2023 attacks connected Israel.

It emerged connected Friday that Hamas had handed implicit the remains of a Palestinian pistillate alternatively than those of Ms Bibas. The radical said determination had been a mistake and transferred Ms Bibas's assemblage aboriginal that day.

Israeli authorities besides said a post-mortem had shown that Ariel and Kfir's captors killed the boys "with their bare hands", contradicting Hamas's assertion that they died successful an Israeli aerial strike.

Israel was scheduled to escaped 620 Palestinian prisoners successful speech for the 10 hostages. More than 400 were Gazans detained by Israeli forces during the war, portion 50 of the prisoners were serving beingness sentences successful Israeli jails.

They had reportedly already boarded buses astatine a situation successful the occupied West Bank erstwhile the bid came to suspend their merchandise portion Netanyahu consulted ministers.

In the aboriginal hours of Sunday, the premier minister's bureau said the merchandise would beryllium postponed "in airy of Hamas's repeated violations, including the ceremonies that humiliate our hostages and the cynical exploitation of our hostages for propaganda purposes".

"It has been decided to hold the merchandise of terrorists that was planned for yesterday until the merchandise of the adjacent hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies."

Hamas - which is proscribed arsenic a violent organisation by Israel, the US, UK and different countries - denounced Israel's determination arsenic a "blatant violation" of the woody and warned US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators that determination could beryllium nary talks connected extending the ceasefire until the prisoners were released.

"We person conveyed a wide and beardown connection to the mediators - we cannot proceed discussing immoderate further steps if these 620 Palestinians are not released," Hamas governmental bureau subordinate Basem Naim said successful an interrogation with Al Jazeera connected Monday.

Asked if the scheduled merchandise of the bodies of different 4 Israeli hostages connected Thursday could beryllium affected, helium replied that "all options are connected the table".

"Before going to the adjacent step, we person to beryllium definite that the past measurement [will happen]," helium added.

"Netanyahu is intelligibly sending beardown messages that helium is intentionally sabotaging the deal, helium is preparing the ambiance for returning backmost to the war. Therefore, what are the guarantees that helium mightiness instrumentality the different 4 bodies and again not merchandise the agreed-upon fig of Palestinians, positive the 620 Palestinians?"

Naim said Hamas had discussed Israel's complaints astir the hostage handover ceremonies, but denied they had been humiliating and alleged that Israeli authorities had mistreated Palestinian prisoners earlier they were released.

The White House backed Israel's determination to hold the captive release, saying it was an "appropriate response" to what it called the "barbaric treatment" of hostages by Hamas.

But President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said helium would question to the portion this week with the purpose of getting "an hold of signifier one".

"We're hopeful that we person the due time... to statesman signifier two, and decorativeness it disconnected and get much hostages released," helium told CNN connected Sunday.

A full of 33 Israeli hostages are expected to beryllium exchanged for astir 1,900 Palestinian prisoners and detainees from Gaza during the ceasefire deal's archetypal phase.

So far, 25 surviving hostages and 4 dormant hostages person been released, portion the bodies of the past 4 hostages are scheduled to beryllium handed implicit this week. Five surviving Thai hostages person besides been freed extracurricular the deal.

The statement has besides seen Israeli forces retreat from densely populated areas of Gaza. Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians person been allowed to instrumentality to their homes successful the northbound and hundreds of assistance lorries are present being allowed into the territory each day.

The ceasefire's 2nd signifier should spot the remaining hostages released, a afloat Israeli withdrawal and a imperishable ceasefire.

The Israeli subject launched a run to destruct Hamas successful effect to an unprecedented cross-border onslaught connected 7 October 2023, successful which astir 1,200 radical were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

At slightest 48,346 radical person been killed successful Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run wellness ministry.

Most of Gaza's colonisation has besides been displaced aggregate times, astir 70% of buildings are estimated to beryllium damaged oregon destroyed, the healthcare, water, sanitation and hygiene systems person collapsed, and determination are shortages of food, fuel, medicine and shelter.