Israel delays release of Palestinian prisoners over 'humiliating' hostage handovers

Israel has postponed the release of over 600 Palestinian prisoners, citing concerns over the manner in which Hamas has conducted recent hostage handovers. The decision follows Hamas's release of six Israeli captives on February 22, 2025, as part of an ongoing ceasefire agreement. The hostages were dressed up in fake army uniforms, though they were not soldiers when abducted.

The Israeli government stated that the delay was a response to what it described as 'humiliating ceremonies' during the handover process. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office accused Hamas of using the hostages for propaganda, saying that their release was conducted in a way that violated the ceasefire terms. According to Israeli officials, the delay will remain in place until there are assurances that future handovers will be conducted in a more acceptable manner.

Hamas, in turn, criticized Israel's move, calling it an 'unjustified breach' of the ceasefire agreement. Ezzat El Rashq, a member of Hamas's political bureau, argued that Israel was using the issue as a pretext to avoid its obligations. Hamas insisted that it had fulfilled its part of the agreement and demanded that Israel proceed with the scheduled prisoner releases.

The six released Israeli hostages included individuals abducted during the October 7, 2023, attacks and others who had been held for nearly a decade. Their release was intended to be part of a broader exchange aimed at securing the freedom of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody. However, Israel's decision to delay the next phase of releases has cast uncertainty over the ceasefire's future.

Under the ceasefire deal's current first stage, Hamas is still slated to hand over four bodies of hostages killed in captivity in exchange for more prisoners.

The postponement comes amid broader tensions surrounding the hostage-prisoner exchanges. One recent controversy involved the return of the wrong remains for an Israeli captive Shiri Bibas, later corrected by Hamas. 

An autopsy conducted on the remains of Israeli hostages Shiri Bibas and her two young boys after they were handed over by Hamas militants found "no evidence of injuries caused by a bombing," a top forensic expert said in a video statement from the Israel's Government press office on Saturday.

Such incidents have deepened mistrust between the two sides.

International mediators have urged both parties to adhere to the ceasefire terms and avoid actions that could destabilize the fragile agreement. The delay in prisoner releases has raised concerns about whether the truce will hold, with both sides accusing each other of bad faith.

As of now, it remains unclear when Israel will resume the release of Palestinian prisoners. Both parties have expressed a willingness to continue negotiations, but the dispute over the hostage handover process has introduced a significant obstacle to further progress.