MISGAV-AM, Israel — Israel and Hamas have reportedly exchanged a list of names as negotiations that would secure the release of some Israeli hostages continue — with one Israeli senior official optimistic that a deal could happen “within a week or two.”
A Hamas delegation was in Cairo over the weekend and presented a list of sick and elderly hostages who would be released during the initial phases of a proposed two-month truce, sources familiar with the recent developments told the Qatari-owned news outlet al-Araby al-Jadeed.
Hamas additionally provided the names of four US hostages, who are not sick or elderly, who would be included in the deal.
“Conditions are ripe for a hostage deal. It could happen within a week or two,” one senior official told Israeli newspaper Ynet.
The Israeli prime minister’s office downplayed the Arab reports, but Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar seemed more optimistic than before that a deal could be reached.
“We’re not there yet — but I hope we will be,” he said.
Another source close to a Hamas official told Ynet there has been a “significant development” during the Egyptian discussions.
“The organization has given Egypt a list of the living hostages and is ready to gradually end the war,” they said.
President-elect Donald Trump issued a statement demanding the release of all hostages before his inauguration or there would be “hell to pay.”
The stern warning helped push Israel and Hamas into talks for possibly the first hostage deal in over a year.
However, Ruth Wasserman Lande, a former Knesset member and former Israeli deputy ambassador to Egypt, said the reported hostage deal doesn’t go far enough.
“The United States needs to put its foot down and say, ‘This is not what we [Trump] meant. We don’t want a partial deal. You need to give back all the hostages now, otherwise all hell will break loose,’” she told The Post in Israel Monday.
Nova festival site survivor Neria Sharabi, whose friend Yosef-Haim Ohana is still being held hostage by Hamas, agreed that this deal falls short of what is needed.
“The only deal that’s supposed to be made should only be with all of [the hostages released.] It cannot be half and half, because there is no guarantee [the others will be released],” he told The Post.
“You cannot do a negotiation with the terror organization, because they can lie. They cannot respect all the rules and all the agreements, and that’s it. We need to bring them all home,” he said, noting that his friend was not included in any of the previous hostage deals.
Of the seven hostages with dual US-Israeli citizenship, four have been declared dead by Israel, making it unclear how four Americans were part of the reported deal, according to the Times of Israel.
The promising talks — which reportedly include the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey — come after negotiations repeatedly failed to reach another agreement for more than a year since the last deal in November 2023, when 105 hostages were released over a week-long truce.
The latest proposal, which was put forth by Egypt, would include a phased Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip over a two-month cease-fire, during which both sides would discuss a more permanent end to the 14-month conflict, according to the al-Araby al-Jadeed report.
Hamas has agreed to the 60-day transitional period, which will allow additional food, medicine and other critical supplies to flow into Gaza.
Egyptian officials believe a deal can be reached before Trump’s January 20 deadline, according to the report.
The cease-fire with Hezbollah is holding, but four soldiers died overnight after tripping a Hezbollah mine, per the IDF.
The Post visited the border Monday — something that would not have been possible just two weeks ago before the cease-fire was enacted.
Overall, locals still living along the Israel-Lebanon border were convinced that the cease-fire will hold in the long run, but it remains calm for now.
