A Hamas official said more Russian Israeli citizens would be released today in appreciation of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s support for the Palestinian cause.

An Israeli man with Russian citizenship was released Sunday outside the truce deal with Hamas, becoming the first male hostage to return home.

“None of the Israeli men detained in Gaza were released, except for Roni Krivoi, of Russian origin, as a result of the movement’s appreciation for President Putin’s positions,” Musa Abu Marzouk, an official with the political wing of Hamas, said on X.

“Today, others will be released outside the deal in appreciation of President Putin’s commendable positions,” he added.

Putin has been critical of Israel’s operation in the Gaza Strip and its toll on Palestinian civilians. He has urged a political solution to the conflict and has backed the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

An American citizen could be among the hostages released from Gaza today, according to a U.S. official and a diplomat with knowledge of the fast-moving events. The official cautioned the situation is still fluid and nothing is final.

There are currently two American women who would meet the criteria to be handed over as part of the truce, but it’s unclear whether that will expand beyond today. As it stands, the agreement is set to expire in a matter of hours.

The Biden administration maintains it is “hopeful” another two-day extension could happen and is actively involved in the talks to secure that, the official stressed, echoing remarks made by Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier in the day.

If an American is released today, the person would be only the second American to be freed as part of the humanitarian pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas. The first American released during the truce was 4-year-old Abigail Mor Edan on Sunday.

Fears were growing for Gaza's youngest hostage after Hamas claimed that he and two other members of his family were killed in an Israeli bombing.

Israel’s military said it was looking into the claim that 10-month-old Kfir, his 4-year-old brother, Ariel, and their mother, Shiri Bibas, were killed. Relatives said they were “waiting for the news to be confirmed or hopefully refuted soon.”

NBC News could not independently verify the claim.

“We thank the people of Israel for the warm embrace but ask to maintain our privacy at this complex time,” the Bibas family said in a statement released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

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WASHINGTON — The special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, Roger Carstens, will travel to Israel today, according to a senior State Department official, marking his first visit to the region since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.

He will support Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to the region, meeting with Israeli government officials and visiting the families of Americans held hostage in Gaza, the senior official said.

Carstens is in regular contact with the families and spoke by phone with some of them before leaving for Israel, a State official said.

Israel believes 161 people are still being held hostage in Gaza, according to Eylon Levy, a spokesperson for the prime minister's office.

Levy said in a news conference today that the remaining hostages include 146 Israelis and 15 foreign nationals. The estimated number of Israelis was not broken down by people who hold dual citizenship.

Of the remaining hostages, according to Levy, 126 are men, 35 are women and eight are under the age of 20.

"Israel is committed to bringing all of the hostages home, whether through this current hostage release pause or after further pressure," Levy said.

Despite the pause in Israeli bombardment, life for most Palestinians in Gaza remains grim, with many displaced from their homes, swaths of infrastructure reduced to rubble and shortages of all basic supplies.

“We are still living in a crisis without electricity, and there is a shortage of everything, including food, water and fuel,” said Yousef Mema, 30, an intensive care nurse who fled his home in Gaza City and now lives in the southern part of the strip.

As part of the agreement between Israel and Hamas, more humanitarian aid has been allowed to enter the enclave. But international aid agencies say this isn’t enough.

“Some humanitarian aid entered Gaza but nothing has really changed,” Mema said. “The only thing that has changed on the ground is that they stopped their massacre against the Palestinians.” He added, “Our living conditions are hard — but we are still alive.”

Failure to secure a permanent cease-fire and a long-term solution will condemn the world to "a never-ending cycle of death and destruction," U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said in a speech today.

He made the comments to the Security Council following the implementation of a new U.N. resolution, which included a call for unconditional release of hostages, demands that parties follow international law, and the need for humanitarian pauses. But he went a step further and said that a "true humanitarian cease-fire" is needed.

"And we must ensure the people of the region finally have a horizon of hope — by moving in a determined and irreversible way toward establishing a two-state solution, on the basis of United Nations resolutions and international law, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security," Guterres said.

He added that, "Failure will condemn Palestinians, Israelis, the region and the world to a never-ending cycle of death and destruction."

A relative mourns 15-year-old Basil Suleiman Abu Al-Wafa, who was killed today during an Israeli military raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank.

Lena Brodski, left, mourns her son, Sgt. Kiril Brodski, a 19-year-old Israeli soldier who was killed Oct. 7, during his funeral today in Tel Aviv. The IDF announced the death yesterday of Brodski and two other soldiers who were initially believed to have been kidnapped during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. But after examining new evidence, the IDF determined they were killed during the attack.

Israel's military said today it is in contact with the family of the youngest hostage held in Gaza and working to assess the accuracy of a Hamas claim that the 10-month-old had been killed along with his brother and mother.

"During the Hamas massacre of October 7, the Bibas family, including 10-month-old Kfir Bibas, his 4-year-old brother Ariel Bibas, and their mother Shiri Bibas — were kidnapped alive into Gaza," the IDF said in a statement.

"The barbarism and cruelty of Hamas is on full display to the world. IDF representatives spoke with the Bibas family following the recent reports and are with them at this difficult time. The IDF is assessing the accuracy of the information," it said.

It came after the armed wing of Hamas said earlier today that the three hostages, who have become some of the most prominent faces of the crisis in the country, had been killed in Israeli bombardment. NBC News has not verified the claims.

The IDF said that “Hamas is wholly responsible for the security of all hostages in the Gaza Strip. Hamas must be held accountable. Hamas’ actions continue to endanger the hostages, which include nine children.”