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Sixth day of prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, as part of a truce mediated by Qatar, Jordan and Egypt that remains hanging by a thread. In a meeting the G7 Foreign Ministers called on Hamas for the unconditional release of all prisoners, and their statement reads that: “We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, United States of America, together with the High Representative of the European Union, we express our satisfaction for the release of some of the hostages seized on 7 October by Hamas and other terrorist organizations, as well as for the recent interruption of hostilities which has meant that humanitarian aid could reach Palestinian civilians in Gaza. As the G7, we demand the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. We ask that the departure of all foreign citizens be facilitated. We reiterate Israel’s right to defend itself and its people, in accordance with international law, in an effort to prevent a repeat of the October 7 attacks.
We appreciate the leadership of the United States and countries in the region, especially Qatar and Egypt, and their tireless efforts to secure the current and future ceasefires. We support the remarkable efforts made by the United Nations to coordinate humanitarian assistance interventions during the current ceasefire.
This agreement is a critical step in bringing home all remaining hostages and fully addressing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. We call on all parties involved to continue to respect the provisions of the agreement and to ensure that further humanitarian aid continues to reach the civilian population of Gaza without interruption. Every effort must be made to ensure that humanitarian aid, including food, water, fuel and medical supplies, reaches civilians. We support the extension of the current truce and those to come, if necessary, to allow relief efforts to be strengthened and to facilitate the release of all hostages.
We underline the importance of protecting civilians and respecting international law, in particular international humanitarian law. We remain steadfast in our commitment to work with all partners in the region to avoid a further escalation of the conflict. Underlining the importance of maritime security, we urge all parties not to threaten or interfere with the legitimate exercise of the rights and freedoms of navigation by all vessels. In particular, we call on the Houthis to immediately cease aggression against civilians and attacks on international shipping lanes and commercial vessels, as well as to release the M/V Galaxy Leader and its crew, illegally seized in international waters on 19 November .
We remain in favor of the creation of a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution that allows Israelis and Palestinians to experience a just, lasting and secure peace.”
