Four female Israeli soldiers were released by Hamas on Saturday in exchange for 200 Palestinian prisoners in the second prisoners swap that takes place as part of a ceasefire deal achieved earlier this month.
The four hostages, named as Karina Ariev, 20, Daniella Gilboa, 20, Naama Levy, 20 and Liri Albag, 19, seen in military uniform, were handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross in Gaza City and placed in vehicles to be taken back to Israel. Large crowds had gathered to watch the handover.
“Today we welcomed home four more Israeli hostages after 477 days in Hamas captivity… Our mission is not over until every single hostage comes home,” IDF Spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari said in a statement as the hostages were reunited with their families.
The young female Israeli soldiers were stationed at an observation post on the edge of Gaza when they were captured and abducted by Hamas militants during the October 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel.
Photos of one of them, Naama Levy, handcuffed and covered in blood as she was being abducted, shocked the world in the first hours following the attack.
“We are happy and excited to see Naama standing on her feet and returning to us,” her family posted on X.
A hug 477 days in the making. pic.twitter.com/GVfiT8iWus
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) January 25, 2025
Civilian hostage Arbel Yehud was also expected to be released on Saturday but was not handed over, which Hamas said was due to a technical issue.
In response, Israel said displaced Palestinians will not yet be allowed to return to northern Gaza, as had been scheduled under the deal, until Yehud is also released.
Israel – Hamas ceasefire deal to bring hostages home
The ceasefire agreement, worked out after months of on-off negotiations brokered by Qatar and Egypt and backed by the United States, went into effect last Sunday, January 19.
Hostages Romi Gonen, Emily Damari and Doron Steinbrecher were released to Israel in the first swap, in exchange for ninety Palestinian prisoners.
200 Palestinian prisoners were to be freed as part of the second exchange, including 120 serving life sentences -some convicted of multiple murders- and 80 with other lengthy sentences.
Israel estimates that 94 Israelis and foreigners remain hostage in Gaza from the October 7 attack, though it is unclear how many of them are still alive.
In the first six-week phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, Hamas is to release a total 33 hostages, including children, women, older men and the sick and injured, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, while Israeli troops are to pull back from some of their positions in Gaza.
In a next phase, the two sides would negotiate the exchange of the remaining hostages, including men of military age, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Ceasefire and prisoner swap to end 15-month conflict
As the ceasefire deal progresses step by step, hopes are rising that the war in Gaza is nearing its end after 15 months of conflict.
1,200 people were brutally tortured and killed and more than 250 taken hostages to Gaza by Hamas millitants that stormed a music festival in Israel on October 7, 2023, which triggered Israel’s war on Hamas and large-scale military operations in Gaza.
Health authorities there estimate that more than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in this war since then.
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