A Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesperson held a press conference on Thursday afternoon and said that the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will begin on Friday morning at 7 a.m.

He added that the first group of 13 hostages will be released on Friday at 4 p.m. and that the list of hostages who will be freed has been transferred to the Mossad. No mothers and children will be separated during the release.

He refused to say whether the hostages will be transferred through the Rafah crossing. He added that the ceasefire will last for four days and that information about the remaining hostages in Gaza will be gathered during those days.

Following Qatar’s declaration regarding the impending commencement of the hostage deal tomorrow, the Prime Minister’s Office has verified that Israel has received an “initial” list containing the names of abductees anticipated to be released.

“The relevant officials are checking the details of the list and are currently in contact with all families,” the statement says.

Following the announcement, a spokesperson for Hamas’s military wing confirmed the report.

Earlier on Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that one of the reasons Hamas has delayed signing the deal is that doesn’t want the Red Cross to be involved in transferring the hostages.

Israel wants the Red Cross to transfer the hostages from Gaza to Israel but Hamas wants them transferred in Egyptian ambulances. Also, Hamas does not want to comply with Israel’s demand for the Red Cross to visit the remaining hostages in Gaza.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)