Sagui Dekel Chen, Alexander Sasha Troufanov and Iair Horn to be released Saturday

Sagui Dekel Chen, Alexander Sasha Troufanov and Iair Horn are the hostages set to be released by Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad on Saturday, the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed on Friday.

The PMO said that Israel had received the list but claimed it had not yet approved it, despite having said just before that the list was accepted.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) said it would release one hostage on Saturday as part of the hostage-ceasefire deal, the group announced on Friday.

Separately, Hamas said the terror groups in Gaza would release on Saturday three hostages, including one with US citizenship, in accordance with the terms of the ceasefire.

Following the publication of the three names, Hamas announced that 369 prisoners will be released from Israeli prisoners on Saturday as part of the exchange. 36 are serving life sentences.

The announcement came after Hamas threatened on Monday to not release any hostages – alleging Israel violated the ceasefire.

Following Hamas’s threat, US President Donald Trump warned Hamas had until 12 p.m. on Saturday to release the hostages – or “let all hell break loose.”

“If all the Gaza hostages aren’t returned by Saturday at 12 p.m., I would say cancel the ceasefire. Let all hell break loose; Israel can override it,” he said, noting that it was Israel’s decision.

“But as far as I’m concerned… I would say cancel it, and all bets are off,” he added. “All of them, not in drips and drabs, not two and one and three and four and two.”

Hostage Families Forum statement

The Hostages Families Forum said it welcomed the “joyous news” but reminded everyone that “the shocking footage of hostage survivors from Saturday and the latest signs of life prove that time is running out for those still held captive.”

The forum stressed the necessity of reaching a “comprehensive and immediate agreement, without gaps or delays, to return all hostages – the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial.”

Source » jpost.com