A senior Hamas official has said that a prisoner exchange with Israel could begin on Monday under the Gaza ceasefire agreement mediated by the United States.
"The prisoner swap might start on Monday," Mousa Abou Marzouq told a televised interview, adding that Hamas does not intend to militarise or publicly celebrate the handover process of captives.
The first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel took effect at midday Friday (0900GMT) as part of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan.
According to the agreement document published by Israel's public broadcaster KAN, Hamas will release all living Israeli captives within 72 hours of Israel’s ratification of the deal.
The group will also provide information on deceased captives to a joint mechanism, including Türkiye, Qatar, Egypt, and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Negotiating cards
Israeli estimates suggest that 48 captives remain in Gaza, including 20 alive.
Over 11,100 Palestinians are held in Israeli prisons, where rights groups have reported torture, starvation, and medical neglect.
Abou Marzouq said Hamas holds "many negotiating cards" and accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of using the prisoner issue to justify continuing the genocide in Gaza.
"The prisoner file is one of the pretexts used by Netanyahu to justify continuing the war," he said, adding that Hamas is working with mediators, “to overcome obstacles and secure the release of Palestinian leaders detained in Israeli prisons."
He said Israeli forces have withdrawn to the "yellow line" but still control 53 percent of Gaza’s territory.
"The withdrawal lines are inaccurate and drawn arbitrarily," he said, stressing that Hamas "will not accept any future Israeli presence in areas it currently controls."
Abou Marzouq also said US troops have been deployed to monitor the ceasefire's implementation, but would remain inside Israel.
He called for a comprehensive Palestinian meeting to reach a consensus on national issues, saying Hamas accepted Trump’s ceasefire plan "to safeguard the supreme interests of the Palestinian people."
"Hamas will not decide the fate of the Palestinian people alone," he said.
"It is a collective and national decision that requires full consensus."
