Qatar and France have facilitated an agreement with Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas to transport urgently needed medication to 45 Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
In exchange, humanitarian and medical aid will be provided to vulnerable civilians in Gaza. The aid is set to depart from Qatar to Egypt and then cross the Rafah border into Gaza. Details about the quantity and nature of the aid for civilians were not disclosed.
The Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson mentioned that the deal involves delivering medication for Israeli captives in exchange for providing humanitarian aid to affected areas in Gaza. Two Qatari Air Force planes carrying medicines purchased in France are expected to land in Egypt, based on an Israeli list.
Negotiations, initiated by the families of some Israeli hostages, took place over weeks. Each of the 45 hostages will receive specific medical packages for several months, coordinated on the ground by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
France, which still has three nationals held in Gaza, clarified that none of them urgently requires medication.
