Despite challenges, Israel’s hostage deal with Hamas remains intact and the terror group appears intent on maintaining it at least until day 42, the final day of the agreement’s first phase.
Following the release of hostages Keith Siegel, Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas on Saturday, the number of hostages returned to Israel under the deal has reached 18, including five Thai nationals freed on Thursday.
Seventy-nine hostages remain in Gaza, a third of the 251 taken on October 7, 2023, in Hamas’ massacre, 35 of whom are considered deceased. The deal’s first phase, set to return 33 Israelis, is expected to bring back 20 more, including the remaining members of the Bibas family —mother Shiri and children Ariel and Kfir. The IDF warned there was a "grave concern for their lives."
Seven hostages over 50 are slated for release: Ohad Ben Ami, Eliyahu Sharabi, Itzik Elgart, Shlomo Mansour, Ohad Yahalomi, Oded Lifshitz and Tzachi Idan.
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Ten hostages classified as ill or wounded are also expected to be freed: Sagui Dekel Chen, Yair Horn, Omer Wenkert, Alexander Troufanov, Eliya Cohen, Or Levy, Tal Shoham and Omer Shem Tov, as well as Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, held in Gaza for nearly a decade.
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Keith Siegel, Yarden Bibas anbd Ofer Calderon reuniting with their families after release
(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit, Ronen Harish, GPO)
A separate list includes two foreign nationals, a Thai and a Nepalese hostage, whose condition remains unknown, along with the bodies of three foreign workers — two Thai and one Tanzanian.
Four more release rounds remain in the first phase: three rounds of three hostages each, followed by a final release of 11 hostages on day 42, including al-Sayed and Mengistu. This last stage is expected to include the bodies of eight hostages from the original list of 33. After this phase, 24 hostages will remain in captivity, not classified as deceased by Israel.