Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has indefinitely delayed the release of what would have been the biggest group of Palestinian prisoners so far

U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy on Sunday said the U.S. expects the second phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal to go forward. Steve Witkoff made the comment in a CNN interview when asked about Israel's decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

In what was set to be the largest swap under January’s ceasefire agreement, six hostages were freed, but the release of some 600 Palestinian prisoners was delayed. It comes after Shiri Bibas’s body was returned by Hamas.

The hostages are the last living hostages to be freed in the first phase of a fragile deal with Israel, adding to pressure for both sides to start negotiations to permanently end the war.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas is set to free six more Israeli hostages Saturday from the Gaza Strip, but the exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners is shadowed by heightened tension between the adversaries that clouds the future of the fragile ceasefire deal.

Earlier this month, the president said he favored taking control of Gaza and displacing the Palestinian population of the devastated seaside enclave. But Egypt and Jordan flatly rejected cooperating.