Hamas announced on Sunday that it will release the last living American hostage in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli-U.S. soldier who was kidnapped on October 7, 2023.

Reuters reported that the 21-year-old's release is scheduled to take place on Tuesday.

Donald Trump started his trip to the Middle East the same day, although Israel has not stopped so far. The U.S. president will visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff told Israeli newspaper Haaretz that he will travel to Israel on Monday. "Currently, the goal is to return Edan Alexander to his family," Witkov said.

"The United States has informed Israel's Hamas of the intention to release soldier Edan Alexander as a gesture to the Americans, without conditions or any other conditions," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

The statement made it clear that Israel has not agreed to a ceasefire and intends to continue its military attack on Gaza. "In accordance with Israel's policy, negotiations will be held in the fires based on the commitment to achieve all the goals of the war," Netanyahu's office said.

Axios reported that Israel would not be asked to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Alexander's release, but a temporary ceasefire must be agreed and a drone flight in Gaza is stopped to allow Alexander to leave the enclave safely.

"The family confirmed that it has notified Hamas' announcement and has been continuously engaged with the U.S. government to understand the possibility of Edan's expected release in the coming days," Alexander's family said in a statement released by the Israel Hostages and Missing Family Forum.

Adam Boehler, The U.S. Hostage Envoy told Reuters that the planned release of Alexander was a "positive step forward" and asked Hamas to also release the bodies of four other Americans who were imprisoned for being in Gaza.

According to Haaretz, the four dead Americans included two in the Israeli military, Omer Neutra, 21, and Itay Hen, 19, and two older Israeli-Americans, Judih Weinstein-Haggai, 70, and Gad Haggai, 73, of her husband, now 73.

Gaza's Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said the group was preparing to "start intensive negotiations immediately" in a statement to reach a final agreement that would end Israel's deadly war against Gaza.

Israeli forces have killed at least 52,800 Palestinians over the past year and a half, while forcibly replacing 2 million survivors, including babies, as Israel restricts widespread food and aid shortages.

At the same time, Gaza still has 59 hostages. According to Trump, only 21 are still alive.

The Qatar and Egyptian governments have been in talks aimed at ending the Gaza war, and in a joint statement they said Hamas’ decision to release Alexander was a “a gesture of goodwill and a positive step towards a negotiation aimed at restoring it to reach a ceasefire”.

Alexander, born in Israel but grew up in the United States by his Israeli parents, moved to Israel in 2022 after graduating from high school and enlisting in the army.

His parents and two young siblings still live in Tenafly, New Jersey.

US Vice President JD Vance released online on Sunday. “If you do that, it would be another victory for Steve Witkoff, who continues to face the abuse of freeing hostages, negotiating complex diplomatic advice and serving his country (at a huge economic cost).