Hamas hands over final living hostages to be released under first phase of Gaza ceasefire

Hamas released six hostages from Gaza on Saturday. Israel was due to release 620 Palestinian detainees in return, but has delayed the exchange citing further security reviews.

Hamas released six hostages from Gaza on Saturday, handing over in two public ceremonies and one private transfer the final living captives whom the warring sides agreed would be freed when a ceasefire began last month. Israel was due to release 620 Palestinian detainees in return, but has delayed the exchange citing further security reviews. A decision will be made regarding the continuation of the process after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes a security consultation on Saturday evening, an Israeli official told CNN. Hamas’ media office has accused Israel of violating the truce with the delay, casting some uncertainty over the precarious ceasefire deal. The release of the six hostages earlier on Saturday came just hours after Hamas returned the remains of Shiri Bibas – the Israeli mother whose young family became a symbol for the plight of hostages being held in Gaza. Hamas delivered a body on Thursday that they said at first was Bibas. But forensic testing by Israeli authorities confirmed that it was not hers, triggering a wave of outrage and condemnation in Israel. The first two hostages to be released on Saturday, Tal Shoham, 40, and Avera Mengistu, 38, were turned over to Red Cross officials in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Shoham was kidnapped from kibbutz Be’eri, along with his two children, wife, and mother-in-law, all of whom were released in November 2023. Mengistu, an Israeli from Ashkelon, crossed into Gaza in 2014. Later on, thousands, including Hamas fighters, gathered at a separate location, in Nuseirat, central Gaza, where three of the hostages – Eliya Cohen, 27, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Omer Wenkert, 23 – were handed over in another heavily choreographed ceremony. A number of children appeared on the stage wearing shirts with photographs of Hamas leaders who had been killed. The three men were kidnapped at the Nova music festival near the border with Gaza. They appeared thin but in better condition than some of the previous freed hostages, whose appearance sparked alarm in Israel. Shem Tov seemed to engage with some of the Hamas fighters on stage and blew a kiss toward the crowd.