The final stage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire is set to unfold within hours, as Hamas confirmed Sunday evening that all remaining living hostages will be released from Gaza on Monday morning — nearly two years after the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre that launched the war.

Senior Hamas official Hussam Badran told the London-based Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper that the release of the living hostages “will take place tomorrow,” as part of the agreement requiring Hamas to hand over every surviving captive — along with the bodies of those confirmed dead — by noon Monday.

According to reports from the Qatari outlet Al-Araby and Al Jazeera, the living hostages will be freed from three separate points across the Gaza Strip, with the Red Cross supervising the transfers. Later in the evening, Hamas is expected to transfer to Israel the bodies of hostages who were killed in captivity.

The terms of the ceasefire — negotiated in Sharm el-Sheikh with U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari mediation — stipulate that Hamas must deliver all living hostages and the remains of the deceased whose locations it knows by 12 p.m. Monday.

Israeli officials said the IDF, the Hostages and Missing Persons Directorate, and the Red Cross are fully mobilized for the operation, which is expected to bring home the final 20 living hostages still held by Hamas.

The transfer will occur in coordination with Red Cross vehicles, which will cross into Gaza at multiple points to collect the captives and bring them to prearranged handover sites under IDF supervision.

“We are ready for every scenario and every timeline,” said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s Coordinator for the Hostages and Missing Persons, in a briefing earlier Sunday. “This time, it’s everyone — all the living hostages are coming home.”

A senior Hamas official cited by Al Jazeera said the group has completed internal preparations for the release, including verifying the identities and numbers of the hostages and transferring them to various sites throughout Gaza.

“Hamas representatives will meet tonight with the Red Cross to finalize the release mechanism,” the official said, without specifying an exact hour for the operation.

The locations of the three release points have not been publicly disclosed, though they are believed to be distributed across northern, central, and southern Gaza to facilitate coordination with the Red Cross and Israeli forces.

While the living hostages are expected to cross into Israel during the morning hours, Al-Araby reported that Hamas plans to transfer the bodies of several deceased captives later Monday evening. Israeli officials said preparations are in place at military bases and hospitals to receive both survivors and remains simultaneously.

Under the agreement, the bodies of Israeli hostages will be handed over to Red Cross personnel, who will transport them to IDF custody for identification and military honors before they are taken to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Abu Kabir.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)