A truce between Israel and Hamas enters its sixth day Wednesday after additional captives were released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, with mediators pushing for a “sustainable” ceasefire. After a 48-hour extension of an initial four-day truce, a new group of 12 captives was freed from Gaza on Tuesday, with 30 Palestinians released from Israeli prisons.
The final 24 hours of the extended agreement begins later Wednesday, with one more exchange of captives for prisoners expected, but mediator Qatar said it was hoping for a more durable arrangement. “Our main focus right now, and our hope, is to reach a sustainable truce that will lead to further negotiations and eventually to an end… to this war,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari told a Doha news conference.
“However, we are working with what we have. And what we have right now is the provision to the agreement that allows us to extend days as long as Hamas is able to guarantee the release of at least 10 hostages.” That provision has allowed the two-day extension that saw 10 Israeli captives released from Gaza overnight Tuesday, along with two Thais freed outside the scope of the agreement.—Agencies
