[News] Israel prepares to receive captives as Hamas insists on release of ‘high-profile’ prisoners

[Anti-Imperialist News]

  Israel prepares to receive captives as Hamas insists on release of
  ‘high-profile’ prisoners

Among the prisoners Hamas is pushing for is Fatah’s Marwan Barghouti, 
who has been rejected by both Tel Aviv and Ramallah

News Desk <https://thecradle.co/authors/news-desk-9>

OCT 12, 2025 
-https://thecradle.co/articles/israel-prepares-to-receive-captives-as-hamas-insists-on-release-of-high-profile-prisoners

(Photo credit: Reuters)

Unnamed Israeli officials cited in Hebrew media on 12 October confirmed 
a report that Hamas is offering an earlier release of captives, possibly 
in the following hours.

According to the Israeli media reports, Hamas is hoping to complete the 
process before the arrival of US President Donald Trump on Monday.

A defense ministry official cited by /Times of Israel/ 
<https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/return-of-hostages-still-expected-tomorrow-morning-defense-source-says/>, 
however, said “at this stage, there is no change in the intelligence 
assessment.”

“The IDF is prepared for any developments regarding receiving the 
hostages,” the source added. The exchange had initially been set for 
Monday morning.

“Israel is ready and prepared for the immediate reception of all our 
hostages. The IDF has completed its preparations for the release of the 
hostages and assesses that all of them will be released before Trump’s 
arrival,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on 12 October.

An Israeli government spokesman said Tel Aviv expects the release of all 
20 living captives in one go, starting Monday morning, adding that 
Israel is also preparing to receive 28 deceased captives.

Sources told Al-Arabiya that Hamas’s Qassam Brigades will release the 
bodies of a number of dead captives on Monday night. The /Wall Street 
Journal/ 
<https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/hamas-says-its-ready-to-hand-over-20-living-israeli-hostages-8bf40741>(WSJ) 
reported earlier on Sunday that Hamas has confirmed 20 captives are 
alive and could be released as early as the evening of 12 October.

The message was reportedly relayed by Arab mediators. The Ministry of 
Health in Gaza has confirmed that authorities in the strip are preparing 
to receive around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners on Sunday.
A spokesperson for Netanyahu's office has denied the possibility of a 
prisoner exchange taking place on Sunday instead of Monday.

However, Israel has rejected Hamas’s demands for the release of several 
high-profile prisoners, including Fatah-affiliated leader and architect 
of the Second Intifada, Marwan Barghouti, Secretary-General of the 
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) Ahmad Saadat, and 
senior Hamas commander Hassan Salameh.

In a last-minute move, Israel removed 11 names of Fatah-linked prisoners 
from the release list and replaced them with 11 Hamas prisoners.

According <https://t.me/thecradlemedia/44015> to the BBC, Hamas is still 
pushing for the release of Barghouti and Saadat in ongoing negotiations 
on Sunday, as well as other high-profile prisoners with long sentences, 
in exchange for an earlier release of captives.

The report said Hamas is willing to release the captives on Sunday if 
even two of these high-profile prisoners are included. Previous Israeli 
reports said the Palestinian Authority (PA) is pressing hard to prevent 
Barghouti’s release.

The current talks are also focusing on the timing and logistics for the 
release of 20 living captives and the return of the bodies of those who 
are deceased.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is pushing Prime 
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make last-minute changes to the release 
list, his spokesman announced. Ben Gvir is demanding the deportation of 
prisoners convicted of attacks on Israelis, rather than their release to 
the occupied West Bank.

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