hostage

One of the hostages is Mr. Sharabi, the chief financial officer of his kibbutz.

Israel’s military didn’t specifically commit to stopping its attacks, but indicated it was moving to a more defensive posture, saying it would prepare for the release of the hostages and react quickly to any threat.

U.S. and Arab mediators had worked fruitlessly for months to craft a deal to at least pause the fighting in Gaza and free more of the Israeli hostages held there.

Israel, Hamas and Middle Eastern countries are set to meet in Egypt on Monday for highly anticipated talks that could pave the way for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages.

Talks on the first objective of the deal—the release of the hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners—get under way this week in Egypt.