On Saturday, Hamas freed six Israeli hostages held in Gaza, including two who had been in captivity for nearly a decade, as a shaky ceasefire heads toward the close of its initial phase. Among those released were Avera Mengistu, a 39-year-old Ethiopian-Israeli, and Hisham al-Sayed, a 36-year-old Palestinian Bedouin with Israeli citizenship. Both men, reportedly suffering from mental illnesses, had entered Gaza independently in 2014 and 2015.
Alongside them, Tal Shoham, 40, Eliya Cohen, 27, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Omer Wenkert, 23, also regained their freedom. These individuals were captured during Hamas’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, from areas near the border and a music festival.
All but Hisham al-Sayed were released through orchestrated ceremonies in Rafah, southern Gaza, and Nuseirat, central Gaza, to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Despite looking pale and thin after more than 500 days in captivity, their physical condition appeared better than some of those released earlier this month.
Paraded on stage by Hamas fighters, the men were coerced to wave and smile at the crowd, despite the Red Cross’s calls for dignified, private handovers. The Israeli military confirmed their safe return to Israel.
In exchange, Israel is obligated to release 602 Palestinian prisoners, including many detained without charges and 110 others serving life or long sentences for acts of violence against Israelis. However, the release of these prisoners faced delays pending a security consultation, as reported by the Israeli media.
Saturday’s exchange means that Hamas has released 29 hostages, four of whom were deceased, in return for over 1,600 Palestinian prisoners. This swap may bolster Hamas’s political standing among Palestinians in Gaza despite the severe repercussions of its attack on Israel.
This marks the final swap of living hostages for Palestinian prisoners in the ceasefire’s initial phase, which is expected to conclude on Thursday with the return of four more bodies. Moving into the next phase, negotiations, yet to fully launch, might lead to a permanent ceasefire after 15 months of conflict. This phase could involve the release of about 60 additional hostages, including soldiers and many presumed dead.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-right coalition allies staunchly oppose a long-term ceasefire, pushing for the military to resume its campaign against Hamas. The first phase of the truce has almost unraveled, requiring intervention from the US, Egypt, and Qatar to maintain course, especially after Hamas accused Israel of blocking humanitarian aid.
Earlier this week, tensions flared when Hamas mistakenly returned the wrong body instead of Shiri Bibas, a 32-year-old Israeli mother captured during the October 7 attacks along with her children, whose bodies were returned earlier. On Friday, Hamas handed over another body, identified as Bibas by Israeli pathologists. Hamas attributed the error to the chaos in Gaza.
The capture of the Bibas family has become emblematic in Israel of Hamas’s violence and the perceived failure of Israeli authorities to safeguard its citizens. The Israeli military stated Friday that autopsies revealed the children were murdered during captivity, disputing Hamas’s claim that an Israeli airstrike was to blame.
Despite the turbulent first phase, Israel has sent a negotiation team to Cairo for the next stage, though little progress has been achieved. Hamas has shown openness to further talks. The initial attack by Hamas reportedly resulted in at least 1,200 Israeli deaths and around 250 hostages taken. In retaliation, nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza health officials, leaving the region in a dire humanitarian state.
