By Blessing Chinagorom
The United States and the United Kingdom have applauded the deal reached to relaase hostage held by Hamas since its October 7 attack on Israel and pause in Gaza’s fight.
On behalf of the United States, the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken in a statement said this outcome is as a result of the tireless diplomacy and relentless effort across the Department and broader United States government.
Blinken stated that he cannot imagine the ordeal that each of these individuals has endured over the past few weeks, and he is thankful that they will be reunited with their loved ones soon.
He appreciated the leadership and ongoing partnership of Egypt and Qatar in this work and thanked the government of Israel for supporting a humanitarian pause that will facilitate the transfer of hostages to safety and allow additional humanitarian assistance to reach Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
The US Secretary further said, “while this deal marks significant progress, we will not rest as long as Hamas continues to hold hostages in Gaza.
“My highest priority is the safety and security of Americans overseas, and we will continue our efforts to secure the release of every hostage and their swift reunification with their families”, Secretary blinken concluded.
In a separate statement, the United Kingdom Foreign Secretary, David Cameron said: “This agreement is a crucial step towards providing relief to families of the hostages and addressing the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
He urged all parties to ensure the agreement is delivered in full. “Of course, we want to see all hostages released immediately and families affected by the horrors of the October 7th terror attack reunited.
“This pause provides an important opportunity to ensure much greater volumes of food, fuel and other life-saving aid can reach Gaza on a sustained basis. We have already doubled our aid commitment to Palestinians this year and will work closely with the UN to ensure it reaches those who need it.
“The UK will continue to work with all partners in the region to secure the release of all hostages, restore security and reach a long-term political solution which enables both Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace”, the Foreign Secretary said.
Meanwhile, it was reported that Israel’s cabinet has approved a prisoner swap deal and temporary truce with Hamas.
The deal will see the release of 50 women and children hostages during a four day pause in fighting, according to a statement released by the Israeli government.
Israel is expected to release around 150 Palestinian children and women captives held in its jails, though no details about this component of the deal have been made public yet.
The names of the Palestinian captives will be made public in the next 24 hours to give any Israeli citizen a chance to appeal against their release in court. The lag time means the earliest that the swap will begin is Thursday or Friday.
Furthermore, the Israeli government said that the release of 10 additional hostages held in Gaza will result in one additional day of a pause in fighting. According to Axios, Israel will also allow roughly 300 aid truck per day to enter Gaza from Egypt, in addition to more fuel.
