More Israeli hostages were released Saturday in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees as part of a ceasefire deal as a body returned from Gaza Friday was confirmed to be that of hostage Shiri Bibas.
Eliya Cohen, 27; Omer Shem Tov, 22; and Omer Wenkert, 23, waved while holding their release certificates before being handed over to the Red Cross Saturday in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
Cohen, Tov and Wenkert were taken from a music festival during the October 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel by Hamas, a U.S.-designated terror group.
Hundreds of people, including Hamas terrorists carrying automatic weapons and grenade launchers and wearing military fatigues, balaclavas and Hamas headbands, gathered in Nuseirat as the handover took place.
In what has become known as “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv, Israelis waving flags and carrying placards with pictures of the hostages watched the releases via video and cheered as the men were paraded on makeshift stages surrounded by masked armed Hamas terrorists.
The public ceremonies staged by Hamas, including the displaying of the hostages, some of whom were made to speak, has been sharply criticized, including by the United Nations, which has denounced the “parading of hostages.”
Hamas Saturday rejected the criticism, describing the ceremonies as a solemn display of Palestinian unity.
Two other hostages were released earlier Saturday. Tal Shoham, 40, who was taken from Kibbutz Be’eri during the Oct. 7 attack, and Avera Mengistu, 39, who crossed over into Gaza on his own around a decade ago, were handed over to the Red Cross in the Gaza city of Rafah.
Hisham Al-Sayed, 36, who had been held in captivity since crossing into the Gaza Strip under unexplained circumstances around a decade ago and was expected to be released, was not publicly handed over. Hamas said he would be released privately to the Red Cross later Saturday.
The six Israelis are expected to be the last living hostages to be freed during the first phase of the ceasefire.
In exchange, Israel is set to release more than 600 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Saturday’s hostage release followed the return late Friday of the remains of Shiri Bibas. Her body was supposed to have been among three others, including two of her children, handed over by Hamas on Thursday. But the Israeli military said the female body was not hers, prompting a warning by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Hamas would “pay the price” for failing to release Bibas’ remains as prescribed by the peace agreement with Israel.
In a video statement, Netanyahu said, “We will act with determination to bring Shiri home along with all our hostages — both living and dead — and ensure Hamas pays the full price for this cruel and evil violation of the agreement.”
A statement released late Friday by the Bibas family said forensic analysis confirmed Shiri Babas’ remains.
“Last night, our Shiri was returned home,” the family said.
Hamas said Bibas’ remains appeared to have been mixed up with other human remains taken from rubble after an Israeli airstrike hit the place she was held.
Israeli officials said forensic evidence indicated Shiri Bibas and her children were killed by Palestinian terrorists.
Israel and Hamas are in the first phase of a ceasefire that began on Jan. 19. Talks on the second phase are scheduled to begin this week, according to Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
Hamas killed about 1,200 people in the October 2023 attack on Israel and took about 250 people as hostages. More than half of the captives have been released in ceasefire agreements and other deals, while eight were rescued in military operations.
Israel’s air and ground war killed more than 48,200 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says the death toll includes 17,000 terrorists. The offensive destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced most of its population of 2.3 million
