Barghouti not included in hostage exchange, Israel to retain majority control of Gaza after first stage

Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti will not be released during the hostage exchange between Hamas and Israel, an Israeli government spokesperson said on Thursday.

In 2004, Barghouti, one of Palestine's most popular leaders, was sentenced by Israel to five life terms. Hamas had fought for him to be released throughout the various rounds of negotiations. According to Israel's Channel 14, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised his coalition partner, Interior Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, on Sunday that he would not release Barghouti.

"I can tell you at this point in time that he will not be part of this release," spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian told reporters. Barghouti has become a popular leading candidate to replace Mahmoud Abbas at the head of the Palestinian Authority. Surveys in the last decade have shown him to have the majority of the Palestinian public's support.

However, shortly after the spokesperson's statements, both Al Jazeera and Times of Israel reported, citing an Arab diplomat and Hamas official respectively, that the identities of the Palestinian prisoners to be released under the deal were still under discussion. The Arab diplomat downplayed Bedrosian's statement claiming Barghouti would not be freed, while the Hamas official said the group would hold a "national dialogue with Palestinian factions" in order to present a unified position regarding Israel's response to prisoners' names.

The cease-fire agreement calls for Hamas to release all remaining 48 hostages — 20 of whom are believed to be alive — in exchange for Israel releasing around 2,000 Palestinians currently held by Israel.

Bedrosian also confirmed that the final draft of the plan's first phase was signed in Egypt earlier in the day, and that the deal includes a 24-hour period following the cabinet meeting before the cease-fire takes effect, after which a 72-hour period for the release of hostages will begin.

A senior U.S. official told the Washington Post that Israeli troops will have a 24-hour window during which to complete the first stage of their withdrawal from Gaza, after which the 72-hour period during which Hamas should hand over hostages would begin.

Bedrosian also stated that Israel intends to be in military control of 53 percent of Gaza following the hostage exchange. It currently controls around 70 percent of the enclave. Palestinian groups, Arab states, and much of the international community has called for Israel to ends it occupation of the enclave and completely withdraw.