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What happened before the Gaza truce collapsed?
Summary
A look back at the final days of November 2023, when a hostage exchange and a Polish offer to Finland drew attention across the region.
What was the state of play on 1 December 2023, the day the world's attention was fixed on the Middle East and on Europe's northern border? Two reports from 29 November frame it.
Hostages and prisoners
Under the Israel–Hamas ceasefire, Hamas released 12 Israeli hostages and four Thai migrant workers, while Israel freed 30 Palestinian prisoners. In what was described as a separate gesture to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Hamas also freed two dual citizens of Israel and Russia.
Poland and the Finnish border
On the same day, Jacek Siewiera, chief of Poland's National Security Bureau, announced that Poland would send a team of military advisors to the Finland–Russia border, in response to an official request for allied support. Finland said it was unaware of the Polish offer. Russia warned against the move, viewing the concentration of troops on the border as a threat.
The two reports concerned different regions, but both showed how quickly diplomacy and security questions were shifting in the final days of that November.
