JERUSALEM—By setting free four hostages in pairs in recent days, Hamas is playing its most effective card for delaying an Israeli ground invasion of Gaza and extracting concessions from the Israelis, officials and analysts said, as international pressure grows on Israel to negotiate the release of all the captives.
The militant group on Wednesday told mediators it was willing to release a larger group of the more than 200 people held in Gaza, but doubled down on its demand for a steady flow of humanitarian aid, including fuel, and for Israel to reduce the intensity of its airstrikes, officials familiar with the talks said.
Organizations:
Wednesday
Locations:
JERUSALEM, Gaza, Israel