Hamas released two hostages, Yarden Bibas, 35, and French-Israeli Ofer Kalderon, 54, to the Red Cross in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday. The highly coordinated handover was part of the ongoing ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.
Another hostage, American-Israeli Keith Siegel, 65, was also expected to be released in Gaza City later in the day, according to the news agency AP.
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This marks the fourth hostage-for-prisoner exchange since the truce began on January 19. In return, Israel is expected to release dozens of Palestinian prisoners from its jails.
The ceasefire deal, aimed at de-escalating the ongoing conflict, outlines the release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners over an initial six-week period. However, Israel has confirmed that Hamas informed them that eight of these hostages were either killed during the October 7 attack or died in captivity.
Additionally, wounded Palestinians are expected to be allowed to leave Gaza for medical treatment in Egypt through the Rafah border crossing, which had been closed since May. A European Union mission was also deployed Friday to help prepare for the crossing’s reopening.
The fate of Bibas’ family remains uncertain. His wife, Shiri, and their two young sons—Ariel, 4, and Kfir, who was nine months old at the time of the October 7 attack—were also abducted.
Hamas claims they were killed in an Israeli airstrike, but Israeli authorities have not confirmed this.
Negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire, which would involve the release of remaining hostages and a possible extension of the truce, are set to begin next week.
However, Israel has reiterated its commitment to dismantling Hamas, while the militant group has insisted it will not release further hostages without a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
The war, which began with Hamas’ October 7 attack that killed approximately 1,200 people in Israel, has resulted in more than 47,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Meanwhile, Israeli military claims to have killed over 17,000 Hamas fighters.
