Western Jerusalem has freed 183 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for three hostages
Hamas has released three more Israeli hostages captured during its October 7, 2023 incursion as part of a ceasefire deal, the IDF has confirmed.
Isreal has responded to the move by freeing another 183 Palestinian inmates, according to the country’s prison authorities. They have been sent in buses to Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
The exchange puts the overall number of hostages released by Hamas since the start of the truce on January 19 at 21 people; 16 of them were Israelis and 5 more were Thai citizens.
Earlier in the day, three Israelis – Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad Ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34, appeared on stage before a crowd in the town of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza and signed handover documents prepared by Hamas. A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Saturday described the emaciated appearance of three hostages released by Hamas as “shocking,” stating that Israel would take action regarding the situation.
“The shocking images we saw today will not pass without response,” the statement said. “The government, together with security officials, will support them and their families. Israel is committed to bringing back all the hostages and missing.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) transported the men to an Israeli military facility in Gaza. They were then moved by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to a base outside the enclave, where they reunited with their families and received initial medical checkups, according to the Times of Israel.
The three men were among 251 hostages taken by Hamas during its incursion into Israel 16 months ago. The attackers also killed 1,200 people. Sharabi and Ami were captured by members of the Palestinian armed group in Kibbutz Beeri close to the border with Gaza, while Levy was snatched from a bomb shelter near the venue of the Nova music festival in southern Israel.
There are thought to be 39 hostages remaining in Gaza, as well as the bodies of 34 who have been confirmed dead by the IDF.
According to the latest figures from Gaza’s health ministry, at least 48,181 people were killed and 111,638 others wounded in Israeli airstrikes and the ground offensive inside the Palestinian enclave since October 7, 2023.
The ceasefire, brokered by Qatar, Egypt, and the US, is structured to take part in three phases. During the first stage, Hamas is set to release 33 hostages, including children, female soldiers, the wounded, and the sick, in return for 1,904 Palestinians imprisoned by the Israeli authorities.
The follow-up phases are expected to secure the release of the remaining male civilians and soldiers held by Hamas, as well as the return of the remains of the dead from both sides.
