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Hamas military wing hands group of hostages over to Red Cross

The Al-Qassam Brigades have handed 13 detained Israeli citizens and seven foreign nationals over to the Red Cross,

DUBAI, November 26. /TASS/. The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (the military wing of Hamas) have handed 13 Israeli citizens and seven foreign nationals over to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

"The Al-Qassam Brigades have handed 13 detained Israeli citizens and seven foreign nationals over to the Red Cross," the group said on Telegram.

On Saturday, the Hamas military wing said it would postpone the release of the second group of hostages, demanding Israel fulfill agreement provisions concerning the entry of trucks with humanitarian aid to northern Gaza and abide by agreements on the release of Palestinian prisoners. Qatari Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said later that Hamas had agreed to free 13 Israelis and seven foreign nationals.

Hamas announced on November 22 that an agreement on a four-day humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip had been reached through the mediation of Qatar and Egypt. The agreement stipulates the release of 50 women and children under the age of 19 who are held in Gaza in exchange for the release of 150 women and children under the age of 19 from Israeli prisons. According to Arab media outlets, the Gaza ceasefire took effect at 7:00 a.m. local time (5:00 a.m. GMT) on November 24.

On the first day of the ceasefire, Hamas released 13 Israeli citizens, while Israel freed 39 Palestinians from jails. In addition, the Palestinian movement also released ten Thai nationals and a Filipino citizen under a separate deal.