Johnathan Paoli
Hamas has confirmed that a group of hostages seized in the 7 October attack on Israel were handed over on Friday as a temporary truce took hold in Gaza following weeks of fighting.
A first tranche of 13 women and child hostages were expected to go back to Israel on Friday under a deal that followed weeks of talks involving Israel, Palestinian militant groups, Qatar, Egypt and the United States.
In addition, Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced that Thai hostages kidnapped during Hamas’s 7 October raids into Israel were also released on Friday.
During the four-day truce, at least 50 hostages are expected to be freed, leaving an estimated 190 in the hands of Palestinian militants, in exchange, 150 Palestinians prisoners, women and children, are expected to be released.
Ziv Agmon, legal adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, told reporters that the hostages would be
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