Hamas has informed Israel that they will release eight hostages on Thursday, including two Israeli women and an elderly Israeli man.
The Israeli hostages set to be released are civilians Arbel Yehud, 29, and Gadi Moses, 80, as well as soldier Agam Berger, 20. Additionally, Hamas will free five Thai citizens who were taken captive during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, but their names have not been disclosed.
In return, Israel will release a larger number of Palestinian security prisoners.
The agreement for Thursday’s release was made to resolve a dispute over Yehud, who is currently held by the terror group Islamic Jihad. Israel had expected her release last Saturday, and when it did not happen, it jeopardized the ceasefire.
Moses, the oldest hostage and the first man to be released under the current ceasefire that started on Jan. 19, will be freed. He is a grandfather of 12 and was taken captive from his home on Kibbutz Nir Oz. His partner Efrat Katz was tragically killed during the abduction.
It is expected that three more hostages will be released on Saturday. Among them could be American hostage Keith Siegel, 65, who is one of the three American hostages believed to be alive. The others are Sagui Dekel-Chen and Edan Alexander. Additionally, Hamas is holding the bodies of four other Americans.
Siegel, abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza on Oct. 7, is from North Carolina. Emily Damari, another captive from Kfar Aza who was released at the beginning of the truce, had requested Hamas to release Siegel instead of her, but the request was denied.
After Yehud’s release, the only remaining civilian women and children in captivity will be Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Ariel and Kfir. Hamas previously claimed that the three had been killed in November 2023, but Israel has not confirmed this. The Israeli military expressed concerns for their well-being recently.
Aside from the Israelis held captive, Hamas also has eight Thai citizens as hostages, with five of them expected to be released on Thursday.
The total number of hostages still held in Gaza will be 82 after the release. Eighteen more hostages are expected to be freed in the initial phase of the deal, with Hamas stating that eight of them are deceased, although the identities have not been disclosed.
Keep Jewish Stories in Focus.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.