Hamas names next hostages to be released under Gaza ceasefire deal
Hamas names next hostages to be released under Gaza ceasefire deal
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Hamas has released the names of three hostages to be freed in Gaza on Saturday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The three men, captured by Hamas during its October 7, 2023 terror attack, are Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad Ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34. It will be the fifth release of hostages since a ceasefire deal was agreed between the militant group in Gaza and Israel. Israel is set to release 183 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday to fulfill its side of the agreement, according to Hamas.
The terms of the deal's first six-week phase call for Hamas to gradually free a total of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Mr Sharabi was taken captive from Kibbutz Beeri, a communal farm that was one of the hardest hit in the Hamas attack. His British-born wife, Lianne, and their teenage daughters were killed by militants. Ben Ami, a father of three, was taken hostage from the same community, where he was the kibbutz accountant.
His wife, who was also captured, was released during a brief ceasefire in November 2023. Mr Levy, a computer programmer from the city of Rishon Lezion, was pulled by militants from a bomb shelter near the Nova music festival. Hamas has so far released 18 hostages, including five Thai citizens captured in Israel during the attack. Last week, Israel released 183 Palestinian prisoners in accordance with the deal.
Details of the planned exchange came as US President Donald Trump continued talking up his widely criticised proposal to move all Palestinians from Gaza and redevelop it as an international travel destination. The idea, which Trump characterised on Friday as a "real estate transaction," has been roundly rejected by the region's Arab governments and by Palestinians themselves, who say forcing them from their homes would constitute ethnic cleansing.
