Hamas has released all 20 living captives it held in the Gaza Strip, while Israel began freeing about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners under a ceasefire deal now being implemented by both sides.

Cheers erupted in Israel early Monday as television stations reported that an initial group of seven captives had been handed to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). 

The Israeli military later confirmed that a further 13 people abducted on October 7, 2023—held in Gaza for more than two years—were also transferred.

Preparations for the Palestinian prisoner releases were meanwhile underway, with buses positioned outside Ofer military prison in the occupied West Bank, where many of those due to be freed are held. 

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said prisoners would be released once Israel received confirmation that all surviving captives were on Israeli soil.

Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs named the first seven released as Guy Gilboa Dalal, 24; Eitan Mor, 25; Matan Angrest, 22; Alon Ohel, 24; Gali and Ziv Berman, both 28; and Omri Miran, 48.

Families were reunited with their loved ones before the released captives were flown to hospitals for medical checks. Reporting from Amman, Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh said those freed were “reported to be in reasonable condition, walking without needing medical assistance.” Ohel’s parents told The Times of Israel their son “looks amazing” and is “standing on his own two feet,” while Mor’s mother told Ynet News her son “looks great, although thin and pale.”

Earlier, Netanyahu’s spokesperson said Israel expected all living captives to be freed before a 09:00 GMT deadline, under the terms of the ceasefire agreement proposed by President Donald Trump. Israel does not expect the repatriation of the bodies of the remaining 28 captives to be completed on Monday, despite a 72-hour deadline set in the deal, the spokesperson added.

Source: Al Jazeera 

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