Hamas on Friday announced it is preparing the release of hostage Edan Alexander, who is an American citizen serving in the Israeli military, along with the bodies of four other dual nationals previously slain.

Alexander was manning a military post near the Gaza Strip on October 7 when the base was overrun by Hamas gunmen pouring in from Gaza. The US-designated terror group further announced it "affirms its complete readiness to initiate negotiations and reach a comprehensive agreement on the issues of the second phase while calling for the occupation (Israel) to fully implement its obligations." The group says it wants to salvage the fragile truce which has been holding.

Hamas stopped short of issuing the names of the four deceased that it plans to release. Alexander's background is that he is a 21-year-old from Tenafly, New Jersey who volunteered to join the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) after high school.

US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff has this week said that securing his release is a top priority for the White House. Newsweek and other describe this is a big diplomatic win for President Trump:

US President Donald Trump had urged the release of the American hostage along with the remaining Israeli hostages, sending an ultimatum to Hamas last week. Trump has since met with several hostages released by Hamas during a first phase of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and the militant group.

Alexander's release would be a boost for Trump's strong push to get hostages released, which has included contacts with Hamas that had surprised the Israeli government. he was the last surviving American hostage.

That the White House appears to have bypassed its Israeli ally on this is a huge blow to the Netanyahu government.

As for the Israeli prime minister, one regional report says he is currently gauging public opinion on the possibility of renewing the war in Gaza:

The Israeli public is largely tired of the war on Gaza and “convinced that Netanyahu is incapable of managing it”, Israeli analyst Ori Goldberg says.

The prime minister is gauging public opinion and “waiting to see which shoe will drop”, Goldberg told Al Jazeera.

“The shoe that calls for the continuation of the war, which demands a great deal from Israelis, or the shoe that is ultimately calling for [a discontinuation] of the war and the understanding that Israel must take home all the hostages and it has no choice.

“So far, Netanyahu has been able to read the public very well, but I’m not sure that’s the case any more,” he added.

Life in the Strip itself is still fraught with extreme dangers given how destroyed the enclave is. Humanitarian workers are reporting that civilians are getting badly hurt upon returning to their dilapidated homes. Walls or structures have crashed down on them.

Footage from Oct.7:

"The buildings are so damaged they’re collapsing on them. Just two days ago, we had a young man – a wall fell on him, broke his spine, and tore his left kidney off his aorta," Dr Feroze Sidhwa, a trauma surgeon with MedGlobals, told Al Jazeera. "So we had to remove his left kidney or he would have bled to death."

The doctor further described that high prices at markets and and lack of humanitarian aid mean "people are turning on each other sometimes and disputes are becoming violent."