14 Israelis, 9 of them children, freed by Hamas on 3rd day of hostages-for-truce deal
A third group of Israeli and foreign hostages was released from Hamas captivity Sunday evening and arrived in Israel, numbering 17 people — 14 Israelis and three Thai citizens.
The Israelis included nine children, two mothers, two more women, and one man. Although the Red Cross said an initial medical examination indicated they were all in good condition, one of the elderly Israeli hostages was taken straight via helicopter to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.
Among those released was Avigail Idan, 4, an American-Israeli citizen from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, whose parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists on October 7 and whom US President Joe Biden had repeatedly pledged to see released.
The group was handed over to the Red Cross around 5 p.m., which delivered them to Israeli forces.
Unlike previous releases, which took place at the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza, 13 of the Israelis were transferred through the border fence in the Strip’s north, amid reports, including in Al Jazeera, that they had been held in the Gaza City area, possibly in regions not yet reached by the massive IDF ground offensive.
From the border, they were ferried to Hatzerim Airbase near Beersheba for an initial reception. They were then to be sent to hospitals to meet their families there.
Ten of those freed were from Kfar Aza. Hundreds of evacuated residents of the kibbutz celebrated Sunday evening at an event hall at Shefayim in central Israel, as they watched news of the release.
Kibbutz members erupted in cheers at the first glimpses of their neighbors in videos from Gaza.
The man freed, Roni Krivoi, holds dual Russian-Israeli citizenship, and was released at President Vladimir Putin’s request. Krivoi was not freed under the current Israel-Hamas framework, which provides for the freeing of at least 50 Israelis over four days, with children, their mothers, and other women prioritized. Krivoi was the only Israeli freed through Rafah, along with the three Thai nationals.
The release took place on time, following concerns that the terror group would once again hold up proceedings, as it did on Saturday, when it delayed the release of the second group for hours, putting the temporary truce deal at risk.
Following the release, 183 hostages are believed to remain held by Hamas., including 18 children (8 girls and 10 boys) and 43 women.
The Israel Prison Service said earlier Sunday it was preparing to release 39 Palestinian terror convicts as part of the deal. That group included a Gazan resident, for the first time. It was unclear if he would be sent to Gaza or the West Bank.
Sunday was the third of four days in which such exchanges were expected to be held, with additional days of calm possible if Hamas agrees to release more hostages.
As the released hostages crossed into Israel, their relatives were awaiting them in Israeli hospitals, having received notification from the government that their loved ones were on the latest list handed over by Qatar, which has been mediating between Israel and Hamas.
Israel has demanded the release of children and their mothers as a priority in the current deal.
Many of those released Sunday will have a bittersweet return, with family members murdered on October 7 or still held hostage in Gaza.
A third group of Israeli and foreign hostages was released from Hamas captivity Sunday evening and arrived in Israel, numbering 17 people — 14 Israelis and three Thai citizens.
The Israelis included nine children, two mothers, two more women, and one man. Although the Red Cross said an initial medical examination indicated they were all in good condition, one of the elderly Israeli hostages was taken straight via helicopter to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.
Among those released was Avigail Idan, 4, an American-Israeli citizen from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, whose parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists on October 7 and whom US President Joe Biden had repeatedly pledged to see released.
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The group was handed over to the Red Cross around 5 p.m., which delivered them to Israeli forces.
Unlike previous releases, which took place at the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza, 13 of the Israelis were transferred through the border fence in the Strip’s north, amid reports, including in Al Jazeera, that they had been held in the Gaza City area, possibly in regions not yet reached by the massive IDF ground offensive.
From the border, they were ferried to Hatzerim Airbase near Beersheba for an initial reception. They were then to be sent to hospitals to meet their families there.
Ten of those freed were from Kfar Aza. Hundreds of evacuated residents of the kibbutz celebrated Sunday evening at an event hall at Shefayim in central Israel, as they watched news of the release.
Kibbutz members erupted in cheers at the first glimpses of their neighbors in videos from Gaza.
The man freed, Roni Krivoi, holds dual Russian-Israeli citizenship, and was released at President Vladimir Putin’s request. Krivoi was not freed under the current Israel-Hamas framework, which provides for the freeing of at least 50 Israelis over four days, with children, their mothers, and other women prioritized. Krivoi was the only Israeli freed through Rafah, along with the three Thai nationals.
The release took place on time, following concerns that the terror group would once again hold up proceedings, as it did on Saturday, when it delayed the release of the second group for hours, putting the temporary truce deal at risk.
Following the release, 183 hostages are believed to remain held by Hamas., including 18 children (8 girls and 10 boys) and 43 women.
The Israel Prison Service said earlier Sunday it was preparing to release 39 Palestinian terror convicts as part of the deal. That group included a Gazan resident, for the first time. It was unclear if he would be sent to Gaza or the West Bank.
Sunday was the third of four days in which such exchanges were expected to be held, with additional days of calm possible if Hamas agrees to release more hostages.
As the released hostages crossed into Israel, their relatives were awaiting them in Israeli hospitals, having received notification from the government that their loved ones were on the latest list handed over by Qatar, which has been mediating between Israel and Hamas.
Israel has demanded the release of children and their mothers as a priority in the current deal.
Many of those released Sunday will have a bittersweet return, with family members murdered on October 7 or still held hostage in Gaza.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan had told NBC ahead of the third release that there was “reason to believe” an American citizen would be freed, apparently referring to Idan. “We think it’s long past time that this little girl, who just celebrated her fourth birthday, is back home with her family. Of course she tragically lost her parents in this vicious, brutal terrorist attack on October 7.”
The hostages were abducted on October 7, when some 3,000 terrorists burst across the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip by land, air, and sea, killing at least 1,200 people and seizing some 240 hostages of all ages, under the cover of a deluge of thousands of rockets fired at Israeli towns and cities.
Israel said Sunday afternoon that 200 trucks carrying humanitarian aid had entered Gaza, with some of the supplies heading for the northern part of the enclave. The trucks were checked by Israeli authorities at the Nitzana crossing with Egypt, before heading to Egypt’s Rafah crossing to enter Gaza. Dozens of the trucks and six ambulances headed for the northern Gaza Strip, including to areas that had not been evacuated, with the approval of Israel, said the Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT).
COGAT later said Hamas was blocking or delaying the entry of aid into northern Gaza, posting an image of what it said was a checkpoint set up by the terror group. It did not explain why the organization might do so.
Late Saturday night, 13 Israeli hostages held by Hamas — eight children, four mothers and a young woman — finally returned to Israel after Hamas delayed their release for long hours, claiming Israel was not living up to certain obligations under the deal, an assertion Jerusalem rejected. Hamas relented following reported intense pressure by Qatar, Egypt and the US.
Hamas’s military wing had claimed it was delaying the release until Israel “adheres to the terms of the agreement related to the entry of aid trucks into the northern Gaza Strip and due to failure to adhere to the agreed-upon standards for releasing prisoners.”
However, Israel had allowed 200 trucks into the Strip on Saturday, as required by the deal, and announced that at least 50 of those trucks had reached northern Gaza, a claim confirmed by the Palestinian Red Crescent.
A political source told The Times of Israel that Hamas’s behavior on Saturday evening “embarrassed” Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
Four Thai nationals were also freed Saturday as part of a separate deal negotiated by Egypt, also with the involvement of Qatar and Iran, after initial reports that seven were set to be released.