All 20 Israeli Hostages Released After 738 Days in Captivity in Gaza
All 20 living hostages were released today after 738 days in captivity in Gaza following a Donald Trump-brokered deal between Israel and Hamas that aims to bring an end to the war. The Mail has more.
Matan Angrest, 22, twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman, 28; Alon Ohel, 24; Eitan Mor, 25; Guy Gilboa-Dalal, 24; and Omri Miran, 48 were the first hostages to be handed over to the Red Cross this morning.
The group of seven was whisked away to a military base in Re’im, near Gaza, before they reunited with their families.
They were followed by a second group of 13 living hostages, who have also finally arrrived in Israel after more than two years in captivity.
The second group to return home included: Matan Zangauker, 25; Nimrod Cohen, 21; Ariel Cunio, 28; David Cunio, 35; Evyatar David, 24; Yosef-Chaim Ohana, 25; Elkana Bohbot, 36; Avinatan Or, 32; Bar Kupershtein, 23; Segev Kalfon, 27; Rom Braslabski, 21; Eitan Horn, 38; and Maxim Herkin, 37.
The bodies of 28 deceased hostages will be handed over later, a Hamas official said, as a task force works to locate their missing remains.
The US President arrived in Israel this morning, where he will soon deliver a historic speech to the Knesset before heading to Egypt for an international peace summit geared towards ending the war in Gaza.
Trump signed the Knesset guest book and wrote: “It is a great honour for me. This is a beautiful day. A new beginning.”
Speaking to reporters earlier on Air Force One as he made his way to Israel, the President said: “The war is over.”
“People are tired of it, it’s been centuries, not just recent,” he said. “The ceasefire will hold, we’re going to make sure it holds.”
Families and friends of the hostages broke out into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that their loved ones were being released.
Tens of thousands of Israelis were also watching the transfers at public screenings across the country, with a major event being held in Tel Aviv.
British-Israeli Emily Damari, freed from captivity last January, was seen watching her best friends Gali and Ziv being released in a private viewing session with close family and friends.
She was sat beside Romi Gonen who was held with her for much of their time in captivity. …
Dozens of friends of Evyatar David have been gathered together near Tel Aviv since 8am on Sunday and have not slept.
Yuval Ovadia, 24, student from Tel Aviv, told the Daily Mail: “I have been here since 8am. It’s such a stressful time, so having everyone together helps.
“It’s friends from all around – we met because of this situation.”
Guy Melamed, 24, student from Zippori, northern Israel, said: “Some of us have been here since we heard the news at 8am yesterday. We knew it was happening in the next 24 hours so we said we need to meet up.
“We needed to be together to be here for each other. As much as you want to fall asleep, it’s the anticipation. It’s just too much – two years we have been waiting for this moment.
“It’s very exciting.”
Evyatar was due for release last January but was instead cruelly forced to watch others released before being taken back into captivity.
Hamas then released horrifying footage of his starved body as he was forced to dig his own grave in a tunnel in Gaza.
Worth reading in full.
Stop Press: Donald Trump has cast doubt on Sir Tony Blair taking a leading role in running the transitional government in Gaza, saying: “I like Tony, I’ve always liked Tony, but I want to find out that he’s an acceptable choice to everybody.”
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Great news.
The best scenario would be if now Hamas split into rival groups that would then mutually destroy each other.
A successor organisation would very likely arise, much in the same way Hamas was already a successor organization to the increasingly (viewed from a Palastinian perspective) toothless PLO.
Unless this coalition that have brokered this deal are able to transform Gaza into a livable place. In which case we would be ushering a new era of governance, in which the old over credentialled, technocratic, intelligentsia are turfed out and business minded, results driven people take their place.
I’m not holding my breath, but one can hope.
The assumption that Muslim inhabitants of Gaza would gladly accept a secular, business-style “American way of life” instead of a vengeful Islam which dominated their lives so far seem far fetched, to say the least. My guess would be that they’d pretty much regard this as colonization by “the Great Satan” USA and that they wouldn’t welcome secular liberalism as liberation from their misery but as an ideologically driven attack on the very substance of their lives.
I hope the project will be led jointly by some wealthy Muslim states.
They might finally have realised that it is in their best interests to end the Palestine problem and not keep ignoring it.
I am reluctant to speak about the people there because I haven’t been to Gaza so, can’t comment authoritatively.
However, judging by my experience of people around the world in general, I suspect that they will all appreciate a more peaceful, prosperous life. Perhaps not initially but not before long.
That is unless Gazans are somehow a unique type of human that doesn’t value peace and prosperity (when it is actually available).
Humans have an irritating tendency for desiring to live free, especially, free from domination by foreigners and “peace processes” for the Middle East have been ongoing for as long as I remember. When Arafat and the PLO compomised, Hamas took over. We’ll see what the next step will be but unless something changed substantially in the meantime — and I don’t see what this could be as the only option is still some kind of two-state solution (at best) with the Palestinians being restriced to a fraction of their erstwhile territory, which has been on offer since 1948 but which nobody ever really wanted — “killing as usual” will probably soon commence again.
I share your pessimism. It doesnt take a large proportion of people to disrupt something and make life awful for everyone else.
The West’s fantasy of ‘some kind of two-state solution’ stops any progress at all.
How Palestine rejected offer to have its own state 5 times in the pasthttps://lawandsocietymagazine.com/how-palestine-rejected-offer-to-have-its-own-state-5-times-in-the-past
“That is unless Gazans are somehow a unique type of human that doesn’t value peace and prosperity (when it is actually available).”
It’s their education system. Even their primary schools need to change their curriculum, to one of at least cooperating with their neighbours.
Did Mossad create Hamas? Or is this just a rumour? Were the IDF told to stand down on Jan 7th? Why do so many Israeli’s dislike mr. Netanyahu? Apparent when they booed him yesterday in the knesset. What corruption charges is he facing. Trump alluded to them during his one hour long speech yesterday.
Can’t for the life of me think of a reason why Macron and Starmer are trying to muscle in on the great work that Trump has achieved.
What an irrelevant pair of W@♤kers they are!
Herzlichen Glückwunsch.
Fantastic news!
Let us hope that Israel being forced to release 2000 Palestinian terrorists and criminals BEFORE Hamas released 20 Israeli hostages, and promised to release the bodies of 28 murdered Israelis later, will not encourage Muslims worldwide to seize hostages for ransom and to free thousands of Muslim Terrorists.
Israel says it has freed all 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 lifetermers, as part of still-unfinished hostage deal | The Times of Israel
That was the whole reason Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th: to seize Jewish hostages to demand freedom for thousands of Muslim Terrorists, and their criminal blackmail succeeded.
This must mark the end of all negotiations with hostage-takers worldwide, because rewarding them will only embolden them in the future. The only way to stop hostage-takers in the future is to obliterate them without mercy, every time they try it.
That was not the whole reason or even part of it. They attacked because their religion told them to do it. If you read any accounts of the attack it was not to grab a few tradable hostages and leave. It was to murder, rape and destroy.
Yes, it was the whole reason.
“Soon after the start of the Hamas operation, there were reports that many civilians and soldiers had been taken as captives back to the Gaza Strip. Later in the day HAMAS ANNOUNCED IT HAD CAPTURED ENOUGH ISRAELI SOLDIERS TO FORCE A PRISONER SWAP.”
Remember how many horrific Muslim Terrorist attacks, rapes and murders, have been launched in the West over the years, and how many people have asked:
“Why do they always attack us in the West, thousands of miles away and nothing to do with the Middle East, but they NEVER ATTACK ISRAEL, right on their doorstep???”
This October 7th attack was the first time in years that Muslim Terrorists actually attacked Israel, and the attack had a specific purpose: HOSTAGES. All the other rapes, murders, gruesome torture and mutilations were just icing on the cake for the Evil Muslim Terrorists, who later focused on the horrific torture of the hostages, while keeping many alive as bargaining chips.
It’s not just the US, it’s everywhere that they don’t control:
The Muslim Brotherhood in 1990
https://x.com/EYakoby/status/1977180037905629250?t=gzWawK3h-gMbybpE1cJmfw&s=09
There has to be some plot twist where these psychopathic f***ers are concerned. And apparently they have to be careful the coffins aren’t booby-trapped with explosives also.
I agree, don’t release a single one of their Jihadi murderers until they keep to their part of the deal;
”Statement from the Hostages and Missing Families Forum
The families of the hostages received with shock and outrage the news that only 4 of the 28 bodies held by Hamas are expected to be returned today.
This is a blatant violation of the agreement by Hamas. We call on the Government of Israel and the mediators to act immediately to correct this grave injustice.
***Not a single Islamist prisoner should be released until all 28 bodies are returned. That is the agreement. And if the agreement is not going to be enforced then it is worth nothing.” Cheryl E.
Source: https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2025/10/13/israel-hostage-forum-says-only-four-bodies-of-deceased-hostages-will-be-returned-monday
It is likely that some of the bodies are buried under rubble in their tunnels but there should have just been 20 terrorists handed over.
Israel’s flag has flown from my home since Oct 7 in solidarity with the the hostages.
I can now remove it.
Is it right that no women prisoners survived their ordeal.
Are you referring to the ones released by Israel? I don’t know if there were any women in amongst them, tbh. 2000 is a LOT of people to name.
It’s common knowledge that the remaining female Israeli hostages were released by Hamas in previous exchanges;
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67477240
President Trump has played a blinder. The UK has lost the plot, old alliances and millions in future trade deals. What an excruciating embarrassment Starmer’s slavish following of EU policy is. We could have been part of this phenomenal attempt at a genuine Middle East peace process but now can only look on as unreliable outsiders with a Prime Minister still prepared to listen to those who want yet more destruction.
The UK hasn’t lost the plot, it’s the current UK Government that has lost the plot.
Normally they represent us, but the current lot are against us and work for foreign agents.
(I am pleased to hear that Trump is quickly figuring out just how toxic Toxic Tony is.)
Hurrah for the release of these Israelis. Regardless of one’s position (or lack thereof) on the politics of the Middle East, one can only be happy that at least these men made it out to return home.
And what a clear statement about how highly the Israelis value each other, that they would release thousands of captured Palestinians in exchange for so few of their living (and dead) fellows.
יהוה
I am pretty certain that – were I forced to live in the Middle East – I would choose Israel. In a heartbeat. I certainly wish to finally visit the place, soon.
Here’s to all normal people all over the world who just want to live their lives knowing that they do no wrong – despite the actions of those who want power over them.
What about the 38 busloads of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel? Why was Israel holding over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Did Israel kill their own when they bombed Gaza over and over during the past one plus years? There are so many questions and few answers at this time. Perhaps the world will have clarity one day.