German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday praised the release of three more Israeli hostages, while again demanding a two-state solution for Israel and a future state of Palestine.
“It is good that more hostages have now been released, including one with a connection to a German citizen,” said Scholz in the eastern German city of Potsdam.
One of the three men released by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Saturday under the terms of the Gaza ceasefire deal is the husband of a German-Israeli woman, who was also taken hostage during the October 7 attacks before being released in November 2023.
“We are now doing everything we can to ensure that more hostages are released and that the ceasefire does not simply end, but that peace can also emerge from the current ceasefire,” said Scholz.
“This two-state solution is now exactly what needs to be developed as a hopeful perspective from the current ceasefire,” he added.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock also welcomed the release of the hostages, but described it as “intolerable that Hamas once again publicly paraded the three men at the last moment and forced them to give ‘interviews’.”
