Hamas Halts Hostage Release, Alleges Israeli Cease-Fire Infractions

Hamas fighters on patrol before handing over three Israeli hostages to a Red Cross team in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza, on Feb. 8, 2025. Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images

The terror group Hamas has announced that it will postpone a planned release of more Israeli hostages, alleging that Israel has repeatedly violated a cease-fire agreement that had allowed other Israeli hostages to leave captivity in the Gaza Strip.

Abu Obeida, a spokesman for Hamas’s armed wing, said it had documented a series of Israeli cease-fire infractions over the past three weeks, including shelling and gunfire, blocked relief deliveries, and delays allowing the people of the Gaza Strip to return to the northern end of the territory.

Obeida said a planned hostage release on Feb. 15 “will be postponed until further notice” and until the Israelis provide compensation for the alleged infractions.

“We affirm our commitment to the terms of the agreement as long as the occupation commits to them,” Obeida said.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the decision to postpone the next hostage release completely violates the cease-fire agreement. He said he has instructed the Israeli troops to be on their highest alert level.

The planned Feb. 15 hostage release was part of a six-week pause in the fighting in the Gaza Strip, during which Israel would see the return of 33 of its hostages taken during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack.

Sixteen hostages have left Gaza so far under the deal.

Israel is also due to release about 2,000 Palestinian detainees during this six-week pause in the fighting.

The pause in fighting is meant to be the first phase of a three-phase deal for Hamas to return about 100 hostages and for an eventual permanent cease-fire to take hold. The second phase of the deal is contingent on the success of the first phase and continued negotiations.

The latest hostage release took place on Feb. 8. Hostages Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami, and Or Levy were revealed to be emaciated as they returned to Israel on that day.

In return for the three hostages, the Israelis released 183 Palestinian detainees. Those detainees were all men between the ages of 20 and 61. Of those, 18 were serving life sentences for deadly attacks on Israelis, 54 were serving long-term sentences, and 111 more had been detained after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack but had not been tried for any crime.

Seven of the Palestinian detainees released on Feb. 8 were taken to hospitals for treatment, according to the Red Crescent.

Andrew Thornebrooke, The Associated Press, and Reuters contributed to this report.