Israel-Hamas war: Egypt receives lists of 13 Israelis, 39 Palestinians to be release today

The head of Egypt's State Information Service (SIS) said in a statement on Sunday that Egypt has received lists of 13 Israelis and 39 Palestinians scheduled for release on Sunday. This will be the third batch in the four-day truce deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar.

"The truce is proceeding without roadblocks," the SIS was quoted by Reuters as saying in a statement. It added that 120 aid tucks crossed from Egypt to Gaza on Sunday including two fuel trucks and two with gas for cooking.

How many Israelis and Palestinians released so far

DAY 1: The first swap between Hamas and Israel happened on Friday, when the truce first came into effect. Hamas released 24 captives held in Gaza, including 10 Thai nationals, one Filipino and 13 Israeli women and children. In exchange, 24 Palestinian women — including two 18-year-olds — and 15 boys who were held as prisoners in Israel were releases, Al Jazeera reported. 

Day 2: Later on Saturday, Palestinian Islamist group Hamas released 17 hostages, including 13 and four Thai nationals. Six of the 13 Israelis were women and seven were teenagers or children. The youngest was three-year-old Yahel Shoham. In return, Israel freed 39 Palestinians — six women and 33 teenagers — from two prisons, the Palestinian news agency WAFA was quoted by Reuters as saying. The second exchange was delayed for hours on Saturday after Hamas accused Israel of violating the agreement.

The four Thais freed on Saturday "want a shower and to contact their relatives", Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on social media platform X. "All were safe and showed few ill-effects," he said.

DAY 3: Now, the third batch of exchange is scheduled to take place across Rafah crossing later on Sunday. At least one American citizen is likely to be freed on Sunday as part of a third day of hostage releases from Gaza, said the US national security adviser.

During the four-day truce, at least 50 captives are expected to be freed, leaving an estimated 190 captives in Gaza. In exchange, 150 Palestinian prisoners are expected to be released.

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Qatar, Egypt and the United States are reportedly pressing for the truce to be extended beyond Monday. However, it is not clear whether that will happen. Israel had said the ceasefire could be extended if Hamas continued to release at least 10 hostages a day. A Palestinian source had said up to 100 hostages could go free.

The Israel-Hamas war

Egypt and Qatar had to mediate to maintain the truce between Israel and Hamas. It's the first halt in fighting since Hamas fighters rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking about 240 hostages.

In response to that attack, Israel vowed to destroy the Hamas militants who run Gaza, bombarding the enclave and mounting a ground offensive in the north. Some 14,800 people, roughly 40 per cent of them children, have been killed, Palestinian health authorities said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, violence flared in the West Bank where Israeli forces killed seven Palestinians, including two minors and at least one gunman, late on Saturday and early Sunday, medics and local sources.

The armed wing of Hamas also announced on Sunday the killing of four of its military commanders in the Gaza Strip, including the commander of the North Gaza brigade, Ahmad Al Ghandour. However, it was not clear when they had been killed.

(With inputs from agencies)