Israel and Hamas have agreed to extend a four-day humanitarian truce in the Gaza Strip, according to Qatar’s foreign ministry.
In a statement, a spokesman for the ministry said an agreement was reached Monday to extend the ceasefire for two more days.
The State of Qatar announces, as part of the ongoing mediation, an agreement has been reached to extend the humanitarian pause for an additional two days in the Gaza Strip.
— د. ماجد محمد الأنصاري Dr. Majed Al Ansari (@majedalansari) November 27, 2023
A Hamas official confirmed the extension in a phone call with Reuters.
“An agreement has been reached with the brothers in Qatar and Egypt to extend the temporary humanitarian truce by two more days, with the same conditions as in the previous truce,” the official said.
Hamas captured about 240 hostages on Oct. 7, during an unexpected attack on Israel, according to The Associated Press. As of Monday morning, 62 hostages had been released. One other was freed by Israeli forces and two have been found dead in Gaza, the AP reported.
Israel has released 117 Palestinian prisoners since Friday, when the ceasefire began. All those released have been identified as women and children, according to NPR and Qatari officials.
Thousands of people have died since the start of the conflict, although exact numbers remained unclear Monday.
