Hamas to release Russian hostages as gesture of thanks to Putin
Show of appreciation follows release of Israeli-Russian national Roni Krivoi on 26 November
![Roni Krivoi](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fvv5Cvp46tyYZSRm83eRhj-415-80.jpg)
Hamas has said it will release a number of Russian hostages in a gesture of thanks to President Putin for his support.
As negotiations with Israel over prolonging the current truce continue, Hamas political bureau member Moussa Abu Marzouk wrote on X, according to Russian news agency Tass: "We have not released any of the Israeli men that are in Gaza, with the exception of Russian Roni Krivoi, whom we released as a token of appreciation for Russian President Putin's stance. Several other Russians will be released today outside of the truce deal."
The acknowledgement of Russian support follows Hamas releasing Krivoi on 26 November, while Putin hosted Hamas leaders in Moscow at the end of October. The Kremlin has been "quick to weaponize the Israel-Hamas war for its own propaganda purposes", said Politico.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Given the provisions set out in the current deal between Hamas and Israel, "the truce could potentially extend to Sunday, assuming more Israeli hostages are set free", said The Times of Israel.
Israel "would like to see all the remaining women and children held hostage in Gaza released over the coming days", added the paper.
The office of the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told CNN that it believes there are 161 hostages still being held in Gaza, including what it believes is "30 to 40 women and children", said The Times of Israel.
Addameer, a Palestinian NGO, told The Economist that it estimated Israeli authorities currently held 7,000 Palestinians in detention, including 2,070 in administrative detention, meaning they were held without charge. Days before the truce began, Israel’s government "published a list of 300 Palestinians who could be released as part of the exchange with Hamas", said the publication. Around 90% are teenage boys between 16 and 18 years old, and the remainder are mostly adult women.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jamie Timson is the UK news editor, curating The Week UK's daily morning newsletter and setting the agenda for the day's news output. He was first a member of the team from 2015 to 2019, progressing from intern to senior staff writer, and then rejoined in September 2022. As a founding panellist on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast, he has discussed politics, foreign affairs and conspiracy theories, sometimes separately, sometimes all at once. In between working at The Week, Jamie was a senior press officer at the Department for Transport, with a penchant for crisis communications, working on Brexit, the response to Covid-19 and HS2, among others.
-
Israel intercepts Houthi rocket after Yemen strike
Speed Read Just hours after its deadly strike on Houthi rebels, Israel said it shot down a Yemen missile
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US military declares end to Gaza pier aid mission
Speed Read The temporary pier mission was troubled by weather and mechanical malfunctions
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Menendez convicted of bribery, fraud, and extortion
Speed Read The New Jersey Democratic Senator was found guilty in a federal corruption trial
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Florida judge dismisses Trump documents case
Speed Read Judge Aileen Cannon ruled that special counsel Jack Smith was improperly appointed
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Hamas says military chief survived Israeli strike
Speed Read An Israeli bombing failed to hit its intended target, military commander Mohammed Deif, but killed at least 90 Palestinians
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
First Israeli report on Oct. 7 finds 'severe mistakes and errors' in IDF response
Speed Reads Israeli military admits failures in response to deadly Hamas attack that triggered Gaza war
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Even with the incumbency factor, the center-left can win and win big'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published