Gaza: Countdown to hostage exchange as world leaders meet tomorrow in Egypt

The anxiety of friends and relatives is growing as the time is approaching when their loved ones again embrace the Israeli-Hamas agreement for a truce and hostage exchange. At the same time, more than 20 leaders, including Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides are preparing to fly tomorrow Monday for Sharm-El-Egypt in order to attend to the summit for Gaza chaired by Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.

It seems that the countdown to the release of hostages has begun after Hamas has announced that it was intended to start releasing hostages tomorrow Monday morning, as it is foreseen, shortly before a “peace meeting” at Sharm El Sheikh. The agreement of the 20 -point plan of Trump provides for the liberation from the Palestinian Islamist movement until tomorrow before noon (local time) of the remaining 48 hostages, alive or dead. In return, Israel is expected to release 250 “prisoners for security reasons”, including persons who have been convicted of deadly attacks on Israelis, as well as another 1,700 Palestinians captured by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip.

“We focus on kissing, hugs, smell,” Ophir Braslavsky told CNN on Saturday, father of Homer Rom Brasslavski. “Many thoughts go through my mind,” he said, stressing that he expected nothing but reunification. “Every second looks like it lasts forever, we just wait for the moment they call us – to Re’im (the meeting point) and then to the hospital,” he said.

For its part, the Israeli penitentiary service announced on Saturday that the transfer of prisoners from various detention centers to two prisons before their release began. A list published by the official Israeli government website on Friday excluded the names of several well -known Palestinian prisoners, including the popular politician Marouan Bargouti.

Yesterday, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Tel Aviv, in view of the expected release of Israeli hostages from Hamas.

Addressing the crowd, US special envoy Steve Whitkov said hostages were “returning home” and praised Donald Trump, who made it possible for a truce to Gaza and the return agreement.

Return to … ruins

At the same time, in Gaza, Palestinian officials said that about 500,000 people have returned to the north for the last two days, after the departure of Israeli troops some people have determined to regain what is left of their homes while others are only in the way.

“Is this gauze? Is that what is left of Gaza? Is this life? We return without homes and no refuge for our children, and winter is approaching, “Sherin Abu al-Yakhni told Aljazeera.

The bulldozers have already begun work in Gaza to remove the ruins from the streets and open the way for repatriation.

Authorities in Gaza say the latest United Nations aerial photographs show that about 41,000 homes have only been destroyed in the city of Gaza.

52 -year -old Raja Salmy told AFP that she had arrived in the Rimal neighborhood of Gaza to find her home disappeared. “I stood in front of him and cried. All these memories are just dust now, “he said.

Comes humanitarian aid

In addition, humanitarian aid organizations are preparing to convey large quantities of vital assistance to Gaza citizens who are even deprived of the necessary. Humanitarian trucks have already reached the Rafa border crossing.

‘We have received messages that tomorrow will be the day that will start the escalation seriously [των παραδόσεων βοήθειας] In the context of the truce, “said Tesshram, UNEF, a UN Children’s Service.

“The stakes are really high,” Ingram said, speaking by phone from Gaza. “Although we have a truce – which means that the bombing stops – the humanitarian crisis continues. We still have famine to combat diseases that are spreading, so we really need this escalation quickly and effectively. “

Cogat, the Israeli military authority overseeing Gaza’s assistance, said 500 trucks had entered on Thursday, of which about 300 were distributed within Gaza by the UN and other organizations. However, it is not yet clear how many trucks have entered southern Gaza since the truce in Palestinian territories came into force on Friday.

A recent report by the world’s leading hunger monitoring organization, Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), with the UN support, estimated that 500,000 people in Gaza – a quarter of the population of the area – suffered from famine.

Summit for Gaza

And while Israel and Hamas are preparing for exchanges, in Egypt tomorrow, Monday 20 leaders will meet with the aim of “ending the war in the Gaza Strip, strengthening efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East and inaugurating a new era”.

In addition, they are expected to discuss the next steps of the agreement with the anxiety about whether the truce will be observed as the armed Palestinian organization withdrew more than 7,000 members to regain control of areas evacuated by the Israeli troops after their departure.

In addition to the Greek Prime Minister and the President of Cyprus, Britain Prime Minister Kir Starmer, his Italian counterpart, Georgia Melon, and Pedro Sanchez of Spain, will also be present. French President Emmanuel Macron also confirmed his presence, according to UN Secretary -General Antonio Guterres.

Israel and Hamas are not expected to attend the meeting.

The Summit was scheduled after the Israeli and Hamas agreement to cease fire and exchange of prisoners following intense indirect negotiations in Sharm El-Sethah in recent days.