On Thursday, Hamas has handed captive Israeli soldier ‘Agam Berger’ over to the Red Cross in the Gaza Strip. Thursday’s release is part of a ceasefire that started on January 19. It is aimed at winding down the deadliest and destructive war ever fought between Israel and the Hamas militant group.
The fragile deal has held for over 10 days, stopping the fighting and allowing for increased aid to flow into the tiny coastal territory. A total of 33 Israeli hostages are expected to be freed in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners during the truce’s initial six weeks.
Israel says it has received information from Hamas that eight of those hostages were either killed in Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack or have died in captivity. On Saturday of last week, four hostages returned to Israel. The released soldiers were escorted out of the Gaza Strip by Israeli special forces following being handed over to them by the Red Cross. These soldiers, who were members of the IDF’s surveillance unit, were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists during the October 7, 2023, attack at the Nahal Oz post.
Footage from Tel Aviv Hostages Square showed the crowd cheering as Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa, Naama Levy and Liri Albag as Hamas set free the hostages and handed them over to the International Red Cross, according to the media reports. The people applauded repeatedly as first pictures of the women were shown and news reports said that they were handed over to the IDF. Many crowd members were wearing bright yellow shirts, expressing solidarity with the hostages, and carried pictures of those returning home today.
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