2:51 PM ET, November 25, 2023
Qatar says hostage releases will resume after Israel and Hamas resolve dispute over terms
From CNN’s Karim Damanhouri and Abeer Salman
A Qatari foreign ministry spokesman said the obstacles that had delayed today’s expected release of hostages and prisoners had been “overcome” through mediation.
“After delays in the release of prisoners from both sides, obstacles have been overcome through Qatari-Egyptian contacts with both sides, and tonight 39 Palestinian citizens will be released from Gaza in exchange for the release of 13 Israeli prisoners who are foreigners outside the framework of the agreement,” said Qatari spokesman Majid Al-Ansari.
What we know about who will be released: Eight Israeli children, five Israeli women and seven other people from other countries are among the hostages to be freed from Gaza on Saturday, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid al-Ansari said on social media site X. Additional details about the foreigners were not immediately available.
According to a report released Saturday by the Palestinian Prisoners Association and the Commission for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs, 33 youths and six women were among the freed Palestinian prisoners.
The statement added that most of the detainees were from the occupied West Bank, except for six from East Jerusalem.
This post has been updated with details about the hostages and prisoners.
