Hamas release three hostages on Saturday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal.
Israel confirmed that its forces received Eli Sharabi, 52, Ohad Ben Ami, 56, and Or Levy, 34. It added that they will be taken for medical treatment and to be reunited with their relatives after 16 months in captivity.
Sharabi was taken by militants from Kibbutz Beeri, a communal farm that was one of the hardest hit by the Hamas attack on October 7.
Bristol-born Lianne Sharabi’s, his wife, and their teenage daughters Noiya and Yahel were killed by Hamas while hiding in their safe room.
His brother, Yossi Sharabi, who lived next door, was taken as a hostage and killed in captivity.
Ben Ami, a father of three, was taken hostage with his wife, Raz, from Kibbutz Beeri, where he was the kibbutz accountant.
Raz Ben Ami was released in November 2023 as part of a ceasefire and hostage release deal struck between Hamas and Israel.
Levy, a computer programmer from Rishon Lezion, was pulled by the militants from a bomb shelter near the Nova music festival in southern Israel.
His wife, Einav Levy, was killed during the October 7 attack. Their son Almog, a toddler, has been living with his grandparents.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has received a list of hostages to be released and has informed the families.
The Hamas-linked prisoner’s office said among the 183 Palestinian prisoners to be released from Israeli jails will include 18 Palestinian prisoners sentenced to life, 54 prisoners serving longer sentences and 111 prisoners from the Gaza strip who were arrested and held without a trial since the October 7 attack.
The exchange comes despite Hamas accusing Israel of breaking the terms of the ceasefire by restricting humanitarian aid. The group alleged much needed aid delivery trucks, carrying items such as tents, fuel and equipment to clear debris, had not made it into the Palestinian territory.
Al-Qanou, a Hamas spokesperson, criticised Israel for not “fulfilling the humanitarian protocol, especially concerning shelter, provisions, tents, rubble removal equipment, fuel and reconstruction materials.”
There has been no response from Israel on Hama’s allegations that the terms of the truce had been broken.
COGAT, the Israeli military agency who coordinate aid deliveries for Gaza, said on Friday that 4,200 trucks with humanitarian aid had moved through Gaza that week and that over 12,000 trucks had entered since the start of the ceasefire.
The amount is apparently inline with the terms of the ceasefire of 600 trucks to enter the Gaza daily, but aid workers say crucial items, such as desalination and water-collection devices, storage units, ovens, water-proof clothing and shelter equipment, continue to be restricted by Israel.
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