Twenty-five hostages have returned alive in various phases of the first stage of the hostage deal, bringing with them signs of life from many still held by Hamas. However, the continuation of the deal remains uncertain.
After Israel decided to delay the release of 620 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday “until the next hostages are secured and without humiliating ceremonies,” the final round of Phase 1 — retrieval of the bodies of four hostages — is now in question. If the issue is resolved and the exchange proceeds, the remains of Shlomo Mansour, Itzik Elgart, Ohad Yahalomi and Tzachi Idan are expected to be returned. This would leave 59 living and killed hostages still in Hamas captivity.
Despite calls from many hostage families to secure their release in a single phase, Israel may seek to extend Phase 1 with additional humanitarian exchanges.
These could include the release of four fathers of young children — David Cunio, Omri Miran, Elkanah Buhbut, and Maxim Herkin — alongside injured or ill hostages whose conditions were recently revealed through testimonies of freed captives.
Of the 59 hostages not included in the first phase, 35 are no longer alive. Most of the remaining 24 have been confirmed to be alive. One of the latest and most harrowing pieces of evidence came from a Hamas video showing Avitar David and Guy Gilboa Dalal watching their fellow captives being released and pleading for their own freedom.
Other Hamas videos, released about two months ago, showed signs of life from Matan Tsangauker —whose mother, Einav, received a cynical “gift” from Hamas in the form of an hourglass with their photos —and from Idan Alexander, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen. US envoy Steve Witkoff has stated that securing Alexander’s release is a priority for the United States.
Most other signs of life have come through freed hostages. Alon Ohel’s family was informed that he is chained and has an eye injury. He had been held for an extended period with Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Eliya Cohen, who have since been released.
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A message was relayed from Elkanah Buhbut himself to his wife and son, and freed hostages reported that he is injured.
Additional signs of life have been received from Nimrod Cohen — who, according to a freed hostage, was held with him for eight months — as well as from twins Ziv and Gali Berman, David Cunio, Segev Kalfon, Yosef Haim Ohana, and Matan Angrest.
Ruti Strom, mother of freed hostage Yair Horn, whose brother Eitan remains in Gaza and has been confirmed alive, said in an interview with Ynet: “The first thing Yair said was that he wants to do everything to bring Eitan back. They were together almost the entire time.” She added that Eitan suffers from a skin condition, which likely worsened in the tunnels, where “there is no air, no daylight, no showers, and no medical care. They are constantly trying to break them mentally. I know that [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu will do everything to bring them all home. That is what needs to happen for all of us to heal together. Eitan is strong. He is strong, and he will come back.”
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Yair Horn arriving at Tel Aviv's Ichilov Hospital following his release
(IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Tzvika Mor, father of hostage Eitan Mor, also spoke to Ynet, confirming they had received a sign of life from his son but no details on his condition. “I’m not even sure this sign came from freed hostages. If someone had seen him, they would have reported on his condition, and we didn’t receive that information. Our demand from the government is that on the 42nd day — this coming Saturday — all the hostages return home. This is the time to leverage President [Donald] Trump’s credit and end this deal this weekend. No more trickles, no more selective releases. We cannot leave their fate in Hamas’ hands. When you negotiate, you are seen as weak, and Hamas is toying with us,” he said.
At the same time, other families have been left in the dark for over 500 days. The mother of Avinatan Or said she has received no sign of life from her son but emphasized, “I do not have the right to break.” Arbel Yehoud, who was held in Gaza alone for an extended period, was freed in the third phase of the deal, but no sign of life has been received from her partner, Ariel Cunio. The family of Maxim Herkin has also not reported receiving any confirmation that he is alive.
Similarly, the family of Tamir Nimrodi has not received a sign of life since he was abducted from a coordination and liaison base near Gaza. The same goes for the relatives of Rom Breslavsky. The last sign of life from Omri Miran was in July, and Bar Kuperstein’s family also reported a sign of life received in the summer.
In addition to the 22 Israeli hostages still considered alive, two foreign nationals — Bipin Joshi from Nepal and Netphong Pinta from Thailand — remain captive in Gaza, with no signs of life confirmed.
Hamas is also holding the remains of 36 Israeli hostages, including Shlomo Mansour, who is expected to be returned this week, as well as Tamir Adar, Dror Or, Guy Ilouz, Master Sergeant Muhammad al-Atrash, Ronen Engel, Aviv Atzili, Uriel Baruch, Sahar Baruch, Sergeant First Class Ran Gweili, Meni Godard, Sergeant Oz Daniel, Inbar Heyman, Judy Weinstein, Ilan Weiss, Aryeh Zalmanovitz, Gadi Hagi, Tal Haymi, Colonel Asaf Hamami, Staff Sergeant Itay Chen, Yair Yaakov, Eitan Levy, Staff Sergeant Shai Levinson, Eliyahu Margalit (“Churchill”), Captain Omer Neutra, Yonatan Semrano, Captain Daniel Peretz, Amiram Kuper, Ofra Kidar, Lior Rodaif, Yossi Sharabi, and Idan Shtivi.
Also held by Hamas are the remains of First Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, who fell during Operation Protective Edge in 2014, as well as three foreign nationals—Joshua Luito Mollel from Tanzania and Sontiya Oukrasri and Sontisak Rintalak from Thailand.
As negotiations remain uncertain, families continue to demand answers and push for the return of their loved ones.