JERUSALEM — (AP) — Hamas said Monday it will delay the further release of hostages in the Gaza Strip after accusing Israel of violating a fragile ceasefire that now faces its most serious crisis since it began three weeks ago.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under heavy pressure to secure the release of remaining hostages after three Israelis freed Saturday came home emaciated after 16 months in captivity. Yet in a sign of the precarious nature of the truce, the Israeli military said late Monday it had canceled leave for soldiers assigned to Gaza.
Hamas' said its plan to delay the next hostage release "until further notice" depended on whether Israel "abides by its obligations." The announcement came as Palestinians and the international community seethed over President Donald Trump's recent comments that Palestinians from Gaza would not have a right to return under his proposal for the U.S. to take over the war-torn territory.
In an effort to improve relations with the Trump administration, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday ended a controversial system that paid stipends to the families of Palestinian prisoners, including those convicted in deadly attacks on Israel. The U.S. and Israel have said the so-called “martyrs fund” rewarded violence against Israel.
Israel and Hamas are in the midst of a six-week ceasefire during which Hamas has committed to releasing 33 hostages captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
The sides have carried out five swaps since the ceasefire's first phase went into effect on Jan. 19, freeing 21 hostages and over 730 Palestinian prisoners. The next exchange, scheduled for Saturday, called for three more Israeli hostages to be freed in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
The war could resume in early March if no agreement is reached on the more complicated second phase of the ceasefire, which calls for the return of all remaining hostages and an indefinite extension of the truce.
An Israeli official said Netanyahu was consulting security officials after the Hamas announcement. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said Netanyahu also pushed forward a scheduled meeting of his Security Cabinet to Tuesday morning from later in the day.
In addition to canceling leave for soldiers in Gaza, the Israeli military also said Monday it was bolstering defensive forces responsible for areas along the border with Gaza.
A judge granted Netanyahu's request to postpone his testimony in an ongoing corruption trial on Tuesday due to the security situation.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Hamas’ plan to delay the next release of hostages was “a complete violation” of the ceasefire agreement and that he instructed the Israeli military to be on the highest level of alert. The prime minister’s coordinator for hostages said the Israeli government intends to live up to its end of the agreement.
Hamas spokesman Abu Obeida said on social media that Israel has obstructed key provisions of the ceasefire by not allowing Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, carrying out strikes across the territory and failing to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid.
The group later put out a statement calling its planned postponement a “warning signal,” adding that "the door remains open for the exchange to proceed as planned if Israel abides by its obligations.”
The group representing many of the families of hostages called on mediating countries to prevent the deal from collapsing.
“Recent evidence from those released, as well as the shocking conditions of the hostages released last Saturday, leaves no room for doubt — time is of the essence, and all hostages must be urgently rescued from this horrific situation,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.
In Gaza, Palestinians fretted the possibility of the truce falling apart.
“People are all afraid. Today, people have begun to stock up on supplies for fear that war will return again," said Mohammad Yusuf of Khan Younis. “There is no safety, because any defect in the agreement leads to the return of war, and the threat of a return of war.”
Trump made his latest comments about Gaza in an interview with FOX News set to air Monday, less than a week after he floated his plan for the U.S. to take control of Gaza and turn it in “the Riviera of the Middle East." He has also ramped up pressure on Arab states, especially U.S. allies Jordan and Egypt, to take in Palestinians from Gaza, who claim the territory as part of a future homeland.
The ceasefire previously hit a snag when an Israeli female civilian held hostage wasn't released as early as planned, and Israel delayed the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza for two days. Negotiators were able to find a solution, and the hostage, Arbel Yehoud, was eventually released with two other hostages.
Under the new system announced by Abbas, the Palestinian president, prisoners’ families will still be eligible for government assistance, but only depending on their financial needs. Previously, payments were determined based on the amount of time a prisoner had spent in prison.
The system will also be transferred from the Palestinian government to an outside foundation.
There was no immediate reaction from the U.S. or Israel.
During Trump’s first term, the U.S. halted assistance to the Palestinian Authority because of the martyr’s fund. Israel has withheld hundreds of millions of dollars of tax transfers to the cash-strapped authority because of the policy.
A senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians have informed the Trump administration of the decision and hope the U.S. legislation cutting assistance, known as the Taylor Force Act, will be rescinded and that Israel will unfreeze the transfers. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing internal deliberations.
Hamas condemned the Palestinian Authority's move, calling it "an unpatriotic move that violates one of our core national principles.”
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Associated Press writer Samy Magdy contributed from Cairo.
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