In a risky move, the Islamist movement announced overnight from Wednesday, October 8, to Thursday, October 9, in Egypt that it would free all its hostages in hopes of ending the war in Gaza, giving up its sole bargaining chip. Its leaders hailed an agreement that would allow for “the end of the war in Gaza, the withdrawal of occupation forces from [the enclave], the entry of [humanitarian] aid and a prisoner exchange,” set to extend through Monday. However, nothing in Donald Trump’s initial statements suggested such an Israeli withdrawal or a guaranteed lasting end to the war. The American president did not even mention a ceasefire.

Negotiators meeting since October 6 in Sharm el-Sheikh spent two days exchanging demands, some of them mutually exclusive. The Israeli government only authorized its representatives to negotiate the practical terms of the hostages’ release and a partial military withdrawal in Gaza, as defined with Washington, and without consultation with the Palestinians. On Wednesday morning, Hamas official Taher Al-Nunu said the movement had on that very day submitted a list of Palestinian detainees it wanted freed from Israeli prisons – a list that was not expected to be finalized until the final hours of talks and, as of Thursday morning, remained unknown.

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