Egyptian authorities Thursday handed over to Hamas four of its fighters kidnapped three years ago at Rafah crossing point. The Palestinian movement announced the release of the four officers, believed to be members of the group’s naval commando forces. The men were kidnapped from a bus at the crossing point between Egypt and the Gaza strip by gunmen, reportedly at the demand of Egyptian authorities. The leader of the movement spent weeks in the Egyptian capital to secure the release of the four operatives. Hamas is still holding two Israeli civilians, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who had crossed the border into the Gaza Strip, as well as the bodies of Sgt.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 01, 2019 11:37 UTC