Three hostages were released in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.
The Israeli military said the hostages, all women, were released into the custody of the Red Cross in Gaza on Sunday and were transferred to Israeli forces, who took them to meet their mothers.
About 100 hostages, alive and dead, are believed to remain held in Gaza, most of them captured in the deadly Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. 33 of them will be released within an initial period of six years. The first phase of the ceasefire, including female soldiers, civilians, children, men over 50 years old, and the sick and wounded, according to the agreement.
IDF spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said on Sunday, in a discussion on social media, that the “vast majority” of the 33 hostages to be released in the first phase of the six-week ceasefire are still alive. .
Video published by the Israeli army Show The three hostages were reunited with their families at Sheba Hospital in Israel.
In one of the clips, one of the returned hostages, Romy Gonen, is shown surrounded by her family members as they comfort each other through tears. Yarden Gonen, her sister, who traveled the world last year to lobby for Romy’s release, jumps up and down in the video as the family hugs. In another clip, another released hostage, Doron Steinbrecher, is seen tearfully hugging her loved ones.
Rumi Gonen
Ms. Gonen was 23 years old when she was arrested while trying to leave the scene Nova Music Festival In southern Israel when Hamas attacked. At the time, she was talking to her mother, Merav Gonen, who said she had been shot and was bleeding.
Last February, Merav Gonen released a recording of Her last phone call With her daughter. She told Israeli media that Rumi was a strong and happy person who often went to concerts.
In the first weeks of the war, her mother expressed concern that Israeli military operations in Gaza could put the hostages in danger.
Yarden, Rumi Gonen’s older sister, told the New York Times in February that she regularly went to a square in Tel Aviv where hostage families held vigils.
“None of us do anything related to our past lives,” she said.
Emily Damari
Al-Damari, who was 27 at the time of her arrest, was the only hostage with British nationality still in custody this month. She was transferred from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza in southern Israel One of her neighbors saw her in her own car. Driven by one of the gunmen, heading towards Gaza.
Ms. Damari grew up in Israel but has traveled to Britain frequently, according to her mother, British-born Mandy Damari, who was in Israel last month to speak with officials and media and to demand a hostage deal and ceasefire. She said that her daughter was shot and that she feared for her life. BBC says She welcomed threats from President-elect Donald J. Trump that there would be a “big push” if an agreement was not reached before his inauguration.
Last January, a hostage released from Gaza, Dafna Eliakim, told Israeli media that she and her younger sister had been taken into Hamas’ underground tunnels, where they met other hostages, including Ms. Al-Damari.
On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the October 7 attacks, Mandy Damari spoke out It happened in Hyde Park In London, where she described her daughter as a football fan who enjoyed a drink and had “classic British humour, with a bit of Israeli chutzpah”.
On Sunday, Mandy Damari thanked “everyone who never stopped fighting for Emily throughout this horrific ordeal.” But she said in a statement: “For many other families, the impossible wait continues.”
The Israeli army also published a photo of Emily Damari and her mother, showing two fingers missing from her left hand. Ms. Al-Damari was shot in the hand on October 7, 2023.
Doron Steinbrecher
Ms. Steinbrecher, who was 30 when she was captured from her home on Kibbutz Kfar Azza, is a veterinary nurse with dual Romanian and Israeli citizenship. according to Israeli mediaShe was in contact with her family on the kibbutz when the gunmen attacked, telling her parents that they had smashed her windows and shot into her room.
“They have arrived, they have arrested me,” she said in a later voice message she sent to friends.
Last January, Hamas released a video of Ms. Steinbrecher and two other female captives, Daniela Gilboa and Karina Arif, in which they demanded their release.
Last March, on her thirty-first birthday Jewish News Syndicate She published an interview with her mother, Simona Steinbrecher, who said she looked pale and thin in the video. She said she was concerned that Ms. Steinbrecher was not getting the daily medication she needed, although she did not specify what that medication was.
“She’s a strong woman, but it’s just terrible for her to be there,” Simona Steinbrecher said.
On Sunday, Doron Steinbrecher’s family issued a statement celebrating her release in which they thanked the Israeli people and expressed their gratitude to Mr. Trump “for his great participation and support, which means a lot to us.” The statement did not mention President Biden or any Israeli leaders.