Palestinian Resistance Group Releases Israeli Captives on Humanitarian Grounds

Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for al-Qassam Brigades, conveyed this decision through his Telegram channel, stating, "We decided to release them on humanitarian and health grounds."

These captives, identified as Nurit Yitzhak and Yochved Lifshitz, were released with the assistance of Egyptian mediation, as reported by al-Qassam Brigades.

The release follows a period during which Israeli authorities had refused to accept them, with Hamas accusing the occupying regime of neglecting its captives. In a statement, al-Qassam Brigades mentioned that they had released these captives despite more than eight violations of agreed-upon procedures by the occupation.

The official Egyptian news agency reported that the two elderly detainees, freed by al-Qassam Brigades, arrived at the Egyptian Rafah crossing. The International Committee of the Red Cross also played a role in facilitating their release and transportation out of Gaza.

Hamas had initially decided to release these two elderly women on Saturday, although the occupation regime had declined to accept them. This development follows the recent release of two American detainees for humanitarian reasons through Qatari mediation. The move aimed to disprove allegations made by the US president and his administration.

Abu Ubaida had previously disclosed that approximately 250 Israelis were captured during Operation al-Aqsa Storm, which began on October 7. He noted that 200 of these captives were held by al-Qassam Brigades, while the remainder were in the custody of other Palestinian resistance factions.

Hamas has reaffirmed that it does not consider civilians as bargaining chips and intends to release them when field conditions permit.

Al-Aqsa Storm operation, initiated by Palestinian resistance movements in the Gaza Strip, was a response to the Israeli regime's violations of Al-Aqsa Mosque and its campaign against Palestinian people, resulting in an all-out war by Israel on Gaza.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, this conflict has claimed the lives of over 5,300 Palestinians, including 2,055 children and 1,119 women, with more than 15,000 people injured.

Israel's energy minister has said that the Tel Aviv regime will not refrain from a ground invasion of Gaza due to the issue of captives held there. In an interview with Germany's Bild publication, Israel Katz stated that the situation would not hinder necessary actions, including a ground offensive.