Everything we know about Israeli hostages in Gaza as Hamas set to release 10
Hamas has agreed to release a batch of the Israeli hostages it abducted on October 7 in exchange for brief cessations in Israel's pounding onslaught.
As it stands, Hamas is holding 240 Israeli and dual national captives behind enemy lines in Gaza, where Israel is continuing its relentless air and ground assault. They were all snatched during Hamas's October 7 massacre, in which more than 1,000 Israelis were slaughtered during the militants' most-audacious attack to date.
For the liberation of its citizens, Israel has agreed to a multi-day truce and the release of a greater number of Palestinian inmates from Israeli prisons. According to the agreement, 50 Israelis will be freed in exchange for 150 Palestinians. However, Israel has published a longer list of 300 prisoners should Hamas agree to an extension of the deal. For every 10 Israelis released, Israel will stop bombing for an additional day, and release more Palestinians.
The truce has been hailed as the biggest diplomative breakthrough since Hamas stormed Israel at the start of October in its lightning and devastating operation, igniting a war in Gaza with a level of ferocity that has never been seen before.
The Israeli official also confirmed there are 127 foreign or dual nationals among the 236 hostages, from 26 countries in total. The highest numbers are from Thailand (26), Argentina (20), Germany (20) and USA (11).
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Qatar, the US and Egypt were instrumental in brokering the deal as fighting continues to intensify in the enclave's central neighbourhoods. War-weary Palestinians will be granted a brief but desperately-needed respite to a region that has suffered more than 11,000 fatalities, the vast majority of them children and women, health authorities have said.
Here is everything we know about the hostages:
Who are the hostages?
The majority of the abductees are Israeli citizens, but there are a number of dual nationals among them. Hamas seized them during the October 7 operation, in which the militants raided a massive outdoor music festival, kibbutzim (collective farms native to Israel), and military bases in southern Israel.
The Israeli government confirmed that among the hostages are civilians holding passports for 40 countries, including the UK, Thailand, the US, France, Argentina and Germany.
Families of Israeli hostages carry Israeli flags and photos of the hostages as they participate in a five-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem (Anadolu via Getty Images)One of the most-concerning elements of the hostage crisis is that up to 40 of them are children, with the youngest being a 10-month-old baby. Emily Hand, a nine-year-old girl whose father was born in Ireland, is one of the best-known child hostages after her father spoke said he felt horrifically relieved when he heard his daughter was killed rather than in the clutches of the militants. Thankfully, it was later revealed that little Emily had actually survived after being snatched from her bed while sleeping at a kibbutz.
After Hamas revealed its plans to release captives, her father urged the Gazan authority to spare his daughter. Thomas Hand, 63, said: "We will only celebrate when she gets home. Then we will throw a massive party with presents and balloons and a cake with all her friends invited.
Three kidnapped Israeli women appeal to Benjamin Netanyahu, blaming him for the October 7 massacre in a video which Israel claims is Hamas propaganda"They are not soldiers. They are just children. Please let them go. Before this, Emily was always smiling. Her real passion was music. She loved Beyonce and would copy her dance moves."
Not all of the hostages were civilians, with a number of IDF soldiers also snatched. There were elderly people, some with disabilities, and a teenage girl who is unable to walk or talk and has to use a feeding tube.
How will the swap work?
Hamas said today the ceasefire is set to come into play at 10am tomorrow morning. Fifty hostages will be released in stages over the course of the four-day truce as Israel will gradually release the 150 Palestinian prisoners from its jails.
Both sides say that women and children will be the first to be released. Among the list of 300 Palestinians are around 60 female prisoners, most of whom were arrested in the past two years for charges like harming regional security, infiltrating Israel, throwing stones and possessing weapons. The vast majority of the prisoners are teenagers.
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Israeli troops show equipment they claim was discovered at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza (IDF/Twitter)Another benefit to the deal is that the cessation in conflict will allow desperately needed humanitarian aid to flood the besieged Strip after months of Gazan civilians being forced to survive on the bare minimum in terms of water, electricity and food.
And there is potential for additional pauses to the relentless fighting as the truce can be extended by 24 hours for every 10 hostages released.
Thomas Hand and Natali Hand (PA)However, an element of Israeli law means that the deal could break down at the last minute. There is a 24-hour period in which Israelis have the right to object to any of the Palestinian prisoners being released from prison - which is then referred to the Supreme Court. Hamas could in-turn decided to quibble on the terms of the arrangement.
After this brief cessation, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has promised that the fighting will resume with the same ferocity. Reports from inside the Strip say that the IDF has stepped up its bombardment over recent days, seemingly hoping to advance as much as they can before the deal comes into play.
A screen shows every person abducted during the October 7 raids (AFP via Getty Images)What kind of conditions have they been held in?
Captives were reportedly held in safe houses and tunnels, according to Hamas. Israel has repeatedly alleged that the militants operate a huge network of subterranean bases from where it launches its attacks.
One woman freed by Hamas earlier in the conflict, 85-year-old grandma Yocheved Lifshitz, reported back on the conditions they were kept in after being freed on "humanitarian grounds". She said the hostages were split into small groups and taken to the underground tunnels. Once below ground, they were forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor.
Israel claims that many of the hostages have been held in Hamas's alleged network of vast subterranean tunnels (@IDF/Twitter)She said that doctors provided them care and made sure the conditions they were living in were hygienic, which was supported by a video released in October, showing medical workers treating the hostages' injuries.
The IDF claims to have additional evidence of the hostages being taken to Hamas's underground tunnel network at the Al-Shifa hospital. One video shared by the military shows the militants escorting two men into the hospital after the massacre on October 7.
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