Hamas Pauses Prisoner Exchange in Response to Israeli Violations

Farrukh Abadi

Hamas has announced that it is suspending the release of Israeli prisoners of war indefinitely until Israel complies with the terms of the ceasefire. Since the January 19 ceasefire, Israel has delayed its withdrawal from Gaza, continued carrying out sporadic attacks across the territory, limited the entry of aid, and obstructed the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza.

The spokesman for Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Obeida, stated: “The handover of the Zionist prisoners, which was scheduled for Saturday, February 15, will be postponed until further notice, until the occupation fulfills its commitments.”

The announcement comes at the halfway mark of the 6-week-long first phase of the ceasefire, during which 33 Israeli prisoners of war are to be exchanged for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners—including high-ranking Palestinian militants—in what the resistance has called the Flood of the Free.

The statement follows the further withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza—including from the Israeli-constructed military axis bisecting Gaza, the Netzarim Corridor—marking the lowest number of Israeli troops in the territory since October 2023.

Discussions for the second phase of the ceasefire had already been delayed as the Israeli government has repeatedly tried to sabotage the deal, and it remains unclear if it will take place at all. Before the announcement of the pause, the Israeli government publicly revealed it had already agreed to certain conditions in the second phase during the negotiation of the ceasefire, which would see the release of more prisoners.

The pause will certainly heighten contradictions among the Israeli lackeys and the imperialists backing them, mainly US imperialism, with the most openly genocidal likely to use the pause as an opportunity to resume its genocide.

Trump responded to the announcement by saying that he will “let all hell break loose” if the Israeli prisoners are not released on Saturday, though qualified his statement by saying that Israel can “override” his decision. Trump also reiterated his call to occupy Gaza, this time stating that it is a “big real estate site” and that Palestinians should not be allowed to stay there. The comments come as the US State Department announced a $7 billion sale of armaments to Israel.

The Palestinian resistance has maintained their commitment to seeing the ceasefire through, and have resorted to pausing the prisoner transfer only to force Israel’s compliance with the ceasefire.

The release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners has strengthened the armed resistance and proven the success of its Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. Last Saturday, Hamas exchanged 3 Israelis for 183 Palestinians. Israeli and US analysts have both admitted that Hamas has considerably added to its fighting capacity throughout the war while polls have shown its popularity among Palestinians soared. On the other hand, the Israeli government announced last month that it would be adding at least 12,500 injured soldiers to its list of seriously disabled troops, indicating that it has been minimizing and covering up its losses throughout the war.

Resistance forces in the West Bank have also been scoring victories against Israeli forces despite the latter concentrating their attacks in an attempt to annex the entire territory. So far, at least 35,000 Palestinians have been displaced and dozens killed since Israel’s genocidal Operation Iron Wall was launched in late January. During a heroic operation at an Israeli checkpoint in Tayaseer last week, a lone Palestinian briefly took control of the upper floor of an Israeli military post and shot and injured 8 Israeli soldiers.

Israel has also continued violating the ceasefire with Lebanon, killing 6 in an airstrike over the weekend. Over 800 violations of the ceasefire by Israel have been recorded by Lebanon since it went into effect last November. Lebanese anti-imperialist party Hezbollah has recently carried out a reconnaissance mission in Israel, indicating their air capabilities remain intact.

Photo: Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades carry out a prisoner swap on Saturday. Retrieved from Palestine Chronicle.

The Worker is an entirely volunteer-run revolutionary newspaper free from and radically antagonistic to corporate influence. We rely on the support of our readers to sustain our editorial line in service of the working class and the reconstitution of its party, the Communist Party. Make a one-time or recurring donation to our newspaper today: