Hamas says release of Israeli prisoners to begin Monday morning

Hamas said it will begin releasing 20 Israeli prisoners still alive on Monday morning, a senior movement official told Agence France-Presse.

According to Arab reports, the operation is expected to take place by 6:00 a.m., without any public ceremony or media coverage. An Egyptian delegation accompanied by the Red Cross will visit the Ofer and Negev prisons to verify the identities of the Palestinian prisoners who will be released simultaneously.

A senior Israeli official said the operation is not an attempt by Hamas to buy time, but a genuine preparation to complete the deal, especially as the search for the bodies of deceased captives continues. The official described the operation as “wide-ranging” amid ambiguity over its details, saying Israel was notified of the timing only a few hours before the scheduled time.

Under the proposed scenarios, the prisoners are likely to depart from several locations simultaneously and meet at a single point to be received together, according to the agreement between the two sides.

The Red Cross is preparing to send six to eight vehicles to the meeting point to transport the prisoners, along with an ambulance in case of any emergency, according to Israel’s Channel 12.