Israeli hostages interviewed on stage by armed Hamas fighters before release

There were emotional reunions in Israel today as three more hostages were freed and saw their families for the first time in 491 days. But loved-ones say the handover was ‘bittersweet’ as the men, Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34, appeared ‘incredibly frail’. They are the latest hostages to be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners, as part of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that began on January 19.

More than 180 Palestinians who had been held in Israeli jails were taken to the West Bank and Gaza today and released. They were met by jubilant crowds and embraced by family as they emerged from buses. Several also looked frail and it’s understood seven were admitted to hospital. Many others needed medical attention, said authorities. Earlier today the three Israeli men were led onto a platform in Deir el-Balah in central Gaza by masked Hamas militants, who then spoke to them while they were on the stage.

A short while later the trio were escorted to waiting Red Cross vehicles.and driven away from the staging area to IDF helicopters who flew them back to Israel. Photos have since emerged of the men embracing their loved ones. The British family of Eli – whose wife and two teenage daughters were killed on October 7 – said they were overjoyed and relieved to see him freed, but concerned at his ‘sunken’ appearance.

His brother-in-law, Stephen Brisley, who lives in Bridgend, Wales, told the Guardian: ‘You can see the clothes are hanging off of him. You can see his face was gone. The spark and the light has gone from his eyes. His cheeks are sunken.’. ‘It’s a bittersweet day because we don’t know, other than the fact that he’s alive, exactly what state he’s in physically and mentally.’. He said, however, he was trying to focus on the joy of him finally returning.

The family had previously said they did not know if Eli knew his wife and daughters had died. Or’s mother, meanwhile, told reporters that the family were unsure if her son was aware his wife was also murdered on October 7. ‘From what we have heard the terrorists very much enjoyed telling the hostages that their loved ones had been killed and causing them pain and suffering,’ she told Israel’s Army Radio.

Metro’s on Whatsapp! Join our community for breaking news and juicy stories. Twenty one Israeli hostages and 754 Palestinian prisoners have been freed so far. As part of the ceasefire a total of 33 Israeli hostages and 1,900 Palestinian prisoners are to be released. Several of the Palestinians released so far – including women and children – are accused of minor offences such as throwing stones, while others have not been convicted or even formally charged. Some have been in jail for many years.

The brother of released Palestinian prisoner Mohammed Abu Sabra said his sibling was captured in 2022 after being shot with 12 bullets. near an Israeli checkpoint in the village of Huwara, in the occupied West Bank’s Nablus governorate. Speaking from Ramallah, Read Abu Sabra told Aljazeera: ‘We initially heard that he was killed, then we were informed that he was alive but in a critical condition.

‘We spent six months not knowing where he is or how he is doing. He was moved to a prison from the hospital and we only were able to visit him once. We couldn’t even get him to do a much-needed operation in his stomach.’. As with the hostages, there was concern over the appearance of many of the prisoners released today. Mustafa Barghouti, secretary general of the Palestinian National Initiative, told the BBC that one, released after 22 years, had lost 35kg (77 pounds) in body weight.

The three Israeli men were abducted during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, that sparked the war after some 1,200 people were killed. Eli and Ohad were both taken from kibbutz Be’eri, and Or was captured at the Nova music festival. Speaking ahead of the handover, Michael Levy, Or’s brother, said his three-year-old nephew, Almog, already knows that his father was on his way. Michael said the family had told Almog that his mother, who was killed, was not coming back but that they were searching for his father.

‘Mogi, we found daddy,” Michael said he told the boy, using his nickname, in an interview with Israeli Channel 12. ‘We haven’t seen happiness like that in him for a long time.’. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. The ceasefire paused the 15-month war in the Gaza Strip where Israel’s retaliatory attack killed more than 47,000 people, over half of them believed to be women and children.

It will be the fifth swap of hostages for Palestinian prisoners since the ceasefire began. There have been fears the deal could be destabilised, however, after US president Donald Trump told reporters about his proposal to permanently ‘resettle’ 1.8 million people from Gaza. He suggested turning the strip into the ‘Riviera of the Middle East’, in plans that have been described as ‘ethnic cleansing’ and a ‘recipe for chaos’.