The Palestinian Hamas movement has communicated that an agreement was reached with Israel regarding the release of 50 hostages. This disclosure appeared in a post on a Telegram channel linked to movements tied to the conflict.
By early October, tensions in the Middle East surged after thousands of Hamas militants crossed into Israel from the Gaza Strip, an action tied to Hamas’s announced Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. In response, Israel’s prime minister announced that the country was at war and began mobilizing its defense posture against the escalation.
Israel’s stated objective in countering Operation Iron Sword centered on several aims: to repel the attack, secure the release of more than 200 hostages including foreign nationals, and degrade Hamas’s capabilities. On the first day of operations, Israel launched heavy rocket strikes targeting the Gaza Strip. Concurrently, the Israeli National Security Council decided to reduce or suspend the flow of essential resources into the Gaza region, including water, food, goods, electricity, and fuel. Humanitarian aid shipments began moving through the Rafah crossing only after October 20, with officials noting the volume remained inadequate to meet urgent needs.
By October 27, Israel spoke of an expansion of its ground operation in Gaza. The exact start date of this phase remained unclear, but in the weeks that followed, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians had fled their homes, seeking shelter in safer areas to the south. By November 5, as the ground offensive continued, Israeli forces had surrounded Gaza City and disrupted critical supply lines, while operations persisted in central Gaza to intensify conflicts.
Earlier, the Israeli government had voted in favor of a framework that included the potential release of the hostages as part of a broader security and military strategy.