TEL AVIV — The Israel Defense Force announced on Monday that all 20 living hostages held in Gaza by Hamas have been released into the custody of the Red Cross and are now on their way to Israel.
The first group of seven hostages was released shortly after 8 am local time. The hostages were transferred by Hamas to the Red Cross, which brought them to Israeli forces inside Gaza.
The other 13 hostages were released two hours later. Before the second group was released, Hamas militants connected them to their families in video calls.
The group of the first seven included: Ohel Alon, Angrest Matan, Berman Gali, Berman Ziv, Gilboa-Dalal Guy, Mor Eitan, and Miran Omri, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office.
The IDF and Shin Bet, the Israeli security service, were expected to help escort the 13 out of the Gaza Strip.
The family of Omri Miran, one of the Israeli hostages released by Hamas on Monday, released a statement after he was handed over to IDF troops in the Gaza Strip.
“After more than 700 long, painful, and agonizing days, Omri will finally receive from Roni and Alma a healing embrace,” Miran’s family said. “We want to thank the people of Israel from the bottom of our hearts for standing by us in the darkest hours and on days when this moment seemed like a distant and impossible wish. This moment, today, is not a personal victory but a victory of an entire people.”
“We also want to express our deep gratitude to the security forces and the heroic IDF soldiers. We are at the beginning of a complex and challenging, yet moving, journey of recovery,” the statement continued. “We remain committed to the struggle — until the last hostage returns, and until the complete recovery of our beloved country. May Omri’s return mark the beginning of this recovery and the unity of our people.”
