JERUSALEM, Feb 23, (V7N) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that the release of Palestinian prisoners as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement will be postponed. He stated that the decision was due to Hamas’ handling of Israeli hostages, where captives were paraded before crowds in orchestrated ceremonies before their release.

Since the truce began on January 19, Hamas has freed 25 Israeli captives in staged handovers, with masked operatives escorting them onto platforms and making them wave at onlookers. During the most recent swap on Saturday, Hamas released six Israeli hostages, but Israel postponed its planned prisoner release. The Palestinian group denounced the delay as a "clear breach" of the agreement.

Israel was initially set to free over 600 Palestinian detainees.

"Due to Hamas’ repeated violations—including the disgraceful public displays of our hostages and their use as tools for propaganda—we have decided to postpone the release of these terrorists. The release will only proceed once the next group of hostages is returned without such degrading spectacles," Netanyahu’s office declared on Sunday.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned from Washington that Hamas would face complete destruction if it failed to release all remaining captives.

Families Left in Limbo

In both Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, families of Palestinian prisoners waited in vain for their loved ones’ release on Saturday.

"The wait is excruciating," said Shireen al-Hamamreh, whose brother was expected to be freed.

"We will endure, and we will stay stronger than the occupier, God willing," she told AFP from Ramallah in the West Bank.

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club, an advocacy group, reported that 620 detainees, mostly Gazans arrested during the conflict, were meant to be released.

Before Netanyahu’s announcement, Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif al-Qanou condemned Israel’s failure to uphold the deal, calling it "a blatant violation" and urging mediators to pressure Israel to follow through.

The delay followed days of heightened emotions in Israel, particularly after a case of mistaken identity regarding the remains of hostage Shiri Bibas.

Netanyahu insisted Hamas would "pay a heavy price" for what he deemed a breach of the agreement in relation to Bibas' body return.

Bibas and her two young sons, who were among those kidnapped during Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack, became emblematic of the hostage crisis.

Israeli forensic expert Chen Kugel confirmed that an autopsy found no evidence of injuries caused by an airstrike, contradicting Hamas' claim that Bibas and her children had died in an Israeli bombing.

Final Hostages Released Under Initial Deal

The six Israelis freed on Saturday were the last to be released under the ceasefire’s first phase, which has so far seen 30 hostages returned. The agreement is set to expire in early March, and discussions on a second phase—intended to bring a permanent end to the war—have yet to begin.

During a ceremony in Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp, Eliya Cohen, 27, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Israeli-Argentine Omer Wenkert, 23, were led onto a stage by masked Hamas members before being handed over to the Red Cross.

"I saw the look on his face—he's calm, he knows he's coming home. He’s a true hero," said Wenkert’s friend Rory Grosz.

In Rafah, under pouring rain, militants transferred Tal Shoham, 40, and Avera Mengistu, 38, both appearing disoriented.

A sixth captive, Hisham al-Sayed, 37, was quietly handed over later and transported to Israeli territory, according to the military.

Sayed, a Bedouin Muslim, and Mengistu, an Ethiopian Jew, had been detained in Gaza for nearly a decade after separately crossing into the territory.

Sayed’s family described his return as "a long-awaited moment."

Confusion Over Remains

On Thursday, Israel’s first receipt of deceased hostages under the truce led to controversy after forensic analysis revealed that the remains initially provided did not belong to Shiri Bibas.

Hamas later admitted there may have been a "mix-up" and, on Friday night, handed over additional remains, which the Bibas family confirmed as Shiri's.

In a statement, the family said she had "been murdered in captivity and has now returned home to rest."

According to Israeli military officials, an examination of the remains concluded that Palestinian militants had killed Bibas' two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, "with their bare hands" in November 2023.

Hamas rejected the claim as "completely false."

Out of the 251 individuals kidnapped during the October 2023 assault, 62 remain in Gaza, including 35 whom Israeli authorities believe to be dead.

The attack carried out by Hamas resulted in 1,215 deaths, mostly civilians, based on Israeli government figures.

In response, Israel’s military campaign has left at least 48,319 people dead in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run health ministry, which the United Nations considers credible.