Israel delays Palestinian prisoner release; moves tanks into West Bank

Palestinian families react after Israel delayed the release of Palestinian prisoners, scheduled to be released in the seventh hostage-prisoner exchange, in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah early on February 23, 2025. Zain Jaafar/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Zain Jaafar/AFP via Getty Images

TEL AVIV, Israel — In a significant disruption of the Gaza ceasefire deal, Israel is delaying the release of hundreds of Palestinian detainees and prisoners after Hamas released Israeli hostages in ceremonies Israel called humiliating.

An official familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said it was Israel's attempt to extend the current phase of the ceasefire before it expires in one week and to seek the release of more hostages. The Prime Minister's Office declined to comment.

Israel's military is also intensifying an offensive against a Palestinian militant stronghold in the occupied West Bank, deploying tanks there for the first time in more than two decades. Israel's defense minister is vowing to keep troops in Palestinian refugee camps and prevent the return of displaced residents in the coming year.

Israel and Hamas traded accusations about the treatment of hostages and prisoners

Hamas released six Israeli hostages Saturday, all but one of them in staged ceremonies. A masked Hamas videographer spoke to one hostage before filming him kissing the heads of masked militants. Hamas also drove a pair of Israeli hostages, still held captive, to a release ceremony, and filmed them at the scene begging Israel to be released.

As part of the hostage-prisoner exchange deal, Israel on Saturday was about to release around 600 Palestinians from jail, wearing sweatshirts with a verse from Psalms translated into Arabic about pursuing one's enemies.

But in a late-night decision, Israel protested the "cynical exploitation of our hostages for propaganda purposes" and said it would delay the Palestinians' release "until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies," the Prime Minister's office said. The decision also came after Hamas returned the remains of an anonymous woman instead of an Israeli hostage killed while in captivity; Hamas later handed over the hostage's body.

Israeli hostage Eliya Cohen (L) and Omer Shem Tov smile to each other as they stand on stage accompanied by Hamas fighters in Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip, after their release as part of the seventh hostage-prisoner exchange on February 22, 2025. Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images

Hamas called the prisoner release delay a ceasefire violation, and rejected Israel's accusation. "These ceremonial protocols do not humiliate the prisoners, but rather reflect the humane and dignified treatment of them. The true humiliation is what our detainees face during the release process, including torture, beatings, and deliberate mistreatment until the very last moments," Hamas said in a statement.

Among the Palestinians who were meant to be released Saturday are those convicted of deadly attacks against Israelis, and hundreds of Palestinians apprehended in Gaza during the recent war and held without charge.

The next phase of the ceasefire remains unclear

Before the current stage of the ceasefire expires Mar. 2, Hamas is meant to return the remains of four Israeli hostages this coming Thursday, and Israel is meant to release more Palestinian detainees and prisoners Saturday.

But the future of the Gaza ceasefire is unclear. Israel's new senior ceasefire negotiator, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, met with President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff in the United States late last week to discuss the next phase, the official said.

Israel is pushing to extend the current phase of the ceasefire and secure the release of more hostages, rather than negotiate the terms of a second phase, which would necessitate a full Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza and a commitment to end the war, the official said. Those are terms that far-right members of Israel's governing coalition oppose.

Israel says 63 hostages remain in Gaza, only 27 of them believed to be alive. They were among more than 250 people taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants from Hamas and other groups broke through the border with Israel and killed some 1,200 people, according to Israel.

In the ensuing 15 months of war, more than 48,000 Palestinians in Gaza were killed in Israeli strikes, according to Gaza health authorities.

People cheer as an Israeli Air Force CH-53 military transport helicopter carrying newly-released Israeli hostages Omer Shem Tov and Eliya Cohen arrives at Beilinson Hospital in the Rabin Medical Centre in Petah Tikva in central Israel on February 22, 2025. Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images

Israel intensifies its operation in the occupied West Bank

The Israeli military announced it was deploying tanks to Jenin, a northern city in the West Bank and the focus of Israel's current operation there. It's the first time Israel has had tanks in the occupied territory since the Second Intifada in 2002.

The operation, which Israel says is for counterterrorism and has been called Operation Iron Wall, began more than a month ago in the Jenin refugee camp, just two days after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was implemented in Gaza. It has since spread to several other areas including the refugee camps of Tulkarem and Nur Shams.

More than 40,000 Palestinians have been displaced from those areas, according to the United Nations and Israel's defense minister — the largest displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank in decades. The majority are staying in rented apartments, which have become increasingly unaffordable, according to reports from the United Nations. Others are staying in makeshift shelters in schools or mosques. Nearly all fled with few belongings and are seeking assistance.

In a statement released today, Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz said that he had instructed the military to remain in the camps for the coming year, and that Israel would "prevent the return of residents" — a threat that echoes the mass displacement of Palestinians in Gaza by order of Israel during the war.

"We will not return to the reality of the past," Katz said. "We will continue to clear the refugee camps and additional terror hubs."

Refugee camps like Jenin and Tulkarem have long been militant strongholds in the West Bank, but are also built-up urban areas home to many families and civilians, with vital resources like schools and hospitals. The United Nations says that Israeli forces have destroyed dozens of buildings in this current operation, ripped up roads and caused severe damage to critical infrastructure like water, sewage and electricity.

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Katz visited troops in Tulkarem, announcing that reinforcements had been called up and that the military operation in the West Bank would "intensify."

The visit came the morning after explosives detonated on several buses in the Tel Aviv suburbs, and several more buses were found with explosives onboard. The buses had been empty at the time and no injuries were reported, but Israeli officials considered it a major terrorism incident.

Nuha Musleh in Ramallah, Yanal Jabarin in Jerusalem and Ahmed Abuhamda in Cairo contributed to this report.