Hamas frees three hostages, Israel releases prisoners as ceasefire holds

Hamas militants released three male Israeli hostages on Saturday with Israel releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in return as the ceasefire agreement holds.

“The returning hostages are currently on their way to an initial reception point in southern Israel, where they will be reunited with members of their families,” the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement.

The hostages, identified as Iair Horn, Sagui Dekel-Chen, and Sasha Troufanov, were handed over to Israeli forces at a location in Khan Younis.

The three hostages were abducted during the 7 October 2023 attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas gunmen and held in undisclosed locations across Gaza.

In exchange for their release, Israel started releasing 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

The prisoners were received in the courtyard of the Ramallah Cultural Palace in the presence of the Red Cross and their families.

The truce that began nearly four weeks ago had been jeopardised in recent days by a tense dispute that threatened to renew the fighting.

Under the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, effective since January and spanning six weeks, 33 Israeli hostages are expected to be released in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinians.

So far, 19 Israeli hostages, along with five Thais, have been released by Hamas.

US President Donald Trump’s controversial proposal to remove more than 2 million Palestinians from Gaza and settle them elsewhere in the region has cast even more doubt on the future of the ceasefire.