Hostage Arbel Yehoud Alive, Set To Be Released: Hamas
Hamas said on Sunday that the hostage, Arbel Yehoud, is alive and that it would guarantee her release. Yehoud, 29, is among the last living female civilians still held in Gaza, and according to the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, she was meant to be released before the four female soldiers who were released on Saturday.
Yehoud and her boyfriend, Ariel Cunio, were kidnapped from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023.
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According to an Al Jazeera report, Hamas has confirmed that Yehoud will be released on Saturday. That has not been confirmed by official Israeli sources nor in the Israeli press. Last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that Israel had not received proof of life for Yehoud.
Hamas’ statement came in the context of the Israeli refusal to allow Palestinians into northern Gaza. “The occupation is stalling under the pretext of the prisoner Arbel Yehoud, even though we informed the mediators that she is alive, and we gave all the necessary guarantees for her release,” Hamas said. “We hold the occupation responsible for the obstruction in implementing the agreement, and we are following up with the mediators with full responsibility to reach a solution that leads to the return of the displaced.”
After Hamas released four female soldiers instead of Yehoud, the prime minister’s office said that Israel would bar entry of Palestinians into the northern Gaza Strip until her release “is arranged.”
