Hamas releases 3 Israeli hostages as Gaza truce proceeds

Hamas released three Israeli civilian men it held hostage in Gaza for the past 16 months, and Israel freed 183 Palestinian prisoners as the tenuous Gaza ceasefire ended its third week.

The handover occurred in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah, where armed and masked Hamas militants guarded a stage adorned with banners mocking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s aim of victory over the Islamist group. Patriotic music blared from speakers.

The Israel Defense Forces announced the three men had been transferred from Hamas captivity by the Red Cross, and that they were next headed for medical checkups in Israeli territory. The fifth such exchange began despite concerns that U.S. President Donald Trump’s call to move Gaza’s 2 million residents out of the coastal strip might affect the shaky truce.

While Israel welcomed his idea, it’s been soundly rejected by Palestinian and many global leaders. The Israelis released on Saturday were Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad Ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34. All looked thin and pale as they exited Hamas vehicles and were ordered to speak words of thanks from the stage, surrounded by gunmen. They were abducted during the Hamas-led assault on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war.

Sharabi and Ben Ami were taken from Kibbutz Be’eri near Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip – one of the hardest-hit collective communities in the attack, with more than 100 slain. Levy was abducted from the Nova music festival, where more than 400 people were killed.

Sharabi’s wife and two teenage daughters were killed during the 2023 attack, and his brother Yossi was abducted and died in captivity. Levy’s wife was killed during the attack; his son, now 3, has been in the care of his grandparents for the past 16 months. Levy’s mother said in a radio interview that it’s unclear if he knows his wife is dead.

In contrast with the joy that greeted earlier releases of hostages who appeared relatively healthy and strong, Saturday’s release filled Israelis with concern about their apparent poor condition. Hamas countered Israeli accusations of hostage mistreatment by saying their prisoners have been released in far worse condition, including signs of torture and abuse.

The health condition of the Palestinians released on Saturday reveals “the tragic situation our prisoners endure inside the occupation prisons,” it said. Among the 183 Palestinians freed on Saturday were 18 serving life sentences for deadly attacks against Israel, 54 serving long-term sentences, and 111 Gazans detained after the Oct. 7 attack. All are men, ranging in age from 20 to 61. Seven are expected to be deported while the rest return to their homes.

Hamas has accused Israel of breaching the ceasefire terms by delaying the entry of hundreds of trucks carrying food and other humanitarian supplies for people returning to their bombed-out homes.

In a press briefing, the Hamas-run media office said 200,000 tents and 60,000 prefabricated houses were supposed to enter, but that only 10% of the tents arrived and none of the houses. Negotiating teams for Hamas and Israel are expected to arrive this weekend in the Qatari capital of Doha to continue indirect talks on concluding the first 42-day phase of the truce and moving into the second, where the differences between their respective aims will surface fully.

Israel says the war can only end with the removal from power of Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by the US and other governments. Hamas says it’s not going anywhere and that Israeli troops need to leave before the next set of releases can occur.

The stage where Saturday’s handover occurred had a banner showing a photo of Netanyahu, head in hand, and the words “Total Victory” in Hebrew, his slogan of the past 16 months. A masked Hamas commander with a bureaucratic stamp and official documents matched signatures with a Red Cross official. Similar demonstrations of Hamas’ ongoing presence and authority have characterized each of the hostage releases, with those being freed often forced to walk through a roiling crowd. Both Israel and US President Donald Trump have assailed the way the handovers have been carried out as abusive. Saturday’s release was less chaotic.

Deir al-Balah, where the handover occurred, is among the least destroyed parts of Gaza and is thought to be where many of the hostages were being held. The Hamas attack in October 2023 killed 1,200, with another 250 abducted.

The war that resulted has killed more than 47,000 Gazans, according to Hamas officials who don’t distinguish between fighters and civilians. It has also decimated large sections of Gaza, reducing whole neighborhoods to rubble. Israel says it’s killed nearly 20,000 Hamas fighters.

Israeli media reported that the prison service prepared a three-minute video of the destruction in Gaza to show those being freed in an effort to demonstrate to them the price of the attack on Israel. The prison service confirmed that it has shown such a video to the prisoners being released.

Trump has described a proposal he made this week to move Gaza’s population to Egypt, Jordan or elsewhere as a humanitarian effort to help people find a better life. But forced displacement is at the center of Palestinian national trauma, and many worry they won’t be permitted back.