All of the 20 remaining living Israeli hostages were released by Hamas on Monday (October 13) in adherence with the first part of a ceasefire agreement between the two sides, NBC News reports.
An initial group of seven hostages returned to Israel, while the remaining 13 were reported to be on their way, after all were released in Gaza. Live video showed a convoy of Red Cross vehicles carrying the remaining living hostages out of southern Gaza on Monday.
The hostages, who were taken captive on October 7, 2023, were met by members of the Israeli military as they crossed over the border back to their home country.
“The commanders and soldiers of the IDF salute and embrace the returning hostages as they make their way home to the State of Israel,” the IDF and ISA said in a joint statement obtained by NBC News.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a group representing the hostage families, confirmed that only four of the 28 bodies of the deceased hostages held by Hamas would be returned on Monday, which it claimed was “a blatant breach of the agreement by Hamas.”
“We expect Israel’s government and the mediators to take immediate action to rectify this grave injustice,” the families added in a statement obtained by NBC News.
The remaining 48 Israeli hostages being released was reported to be part of the first face of the announced peace deal between Israel and Hamas shortly after President Donald Trump‘s original announcement last Thursday (October 9). The Hostages and Missing Families Forum previously said its members felt “a mix of excitement, anticipation, and concern” following the agreement, which came two years and one day after the Israeli hostages were taken captive by Hamas.
Hamas has confirmed it will participate in the hostage and prisoner exchange, however, hasn’t said it would disarm and disband, which was a key stipulation in Trump’s proposal. The first phase also hasn’t given a medium or long-term plan on Gaza’s future as the Israel Defense Forces said it would adjust “deployment lines soon” but reiterated that parts of Gaza were “still considered a dangerous combat zone” and confirmed that troops were “deployed and operating anywhere in the Strip.”
A previous ceasefire lasted from January 19 to March 18, which was followed by a barrage of deadly airstrikes launched by Israel across the Gaza Strip. Israel blamed Hamas for the hostilities, claiming the militant group refused to meet its demand to release more hostages at the time.
Israel launched its war with Hamas following the October 7, 2023, attack on an Israeli music festival, which resulted in an estimated 1,200 deaths and 251 people being taken hostage. Israel retaliated with its war on the terror organization carried out in Gaza resulting in more than 69,000 Palestinians and more than 1,900 Israelis being killed.
A United Nations commission comprised of a team of independent experts formally accused Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and called on the international community to end the campaign earlier this month.
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