Twenty were returned to Israel on Monday, marking the first stage of a landmark ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.
The deal is part of a broader plan mediated by to halt the two-year conflict. Trump also flew to the Middle East and addressed the Knesset in Israel to mark the beginning of the peace accord.
How were the hostages released?
The Israeli military said the freed captives, all men, were reunited with their families and taken to hospitals for medical checks.
Israel released images of the hostages returning home, including a photo of 28-year-old twins Gali and Ziv Berman embracing as they were reunited after months in captivity in the .
Hostages freed earlier said the twins had been held separately. The photos of the first seven hostages released Monday show them appearing pale but less gaunt than those freed in January.
Hamas initially released seven hostages, followed by 13 more.
Under the agreement, Israel began freeing some of the more than 1,900 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
TV broadcasts showed tearful scenes as families met their relatives at Israeli hospitals. In Tel Aviv and other cities, large crowds gathered in public squares to watch the handovers live, breaking into cheers as TV anchors confirmed the hostages’ release.
What has happened with the dead hostages?
Uncertainty still surrounds the fate of the still held in Gaza.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Hamas was expected to return only four of the 28 confirmed-dead captives. Israeli officials have not confirmed the figure, and the military said it did not expect all bodies to be returned on Monday, despite the ceasefire’s stipulating repatriation within 72 hours of the fighting’s end.
A government statement said that, should Hamas fail to hand over all remains, “an international body” would assist in locating them.
What about the Palestinians held by Israel?
In the occupied West Bank, thousands of people celebrated as buses carrying freed Palestinians left Ofer Prison for Beitunia, near Ramallah. Crowds waved flags and chanted as they welcomed the people home.
In Gaza’s southern city of Khan Younis, hundreds of people gathered outside Nasser Hospital to greet buses carrying more released Palestinians. According to Israeli officials, the group includes about 250 people serving life sentences for attacks on Israelis, as well as roughly 1,700 Gazans detained during the war without formal charges.
The truce, the first since the latest phase of the conflict began, has brought a rare moment of relief after two years of violence, though officials on both sides warn that it remains fragile and dependent on continued exchanges and adherence to its conditions.
What did Trump say to the Knesset?
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and greeted President Trump, first lady Melania Trump, the president’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, as well as senior adviser Steve Witkoff upon their arrival in Jerusalem.
Trump met with families of Israeli hostages and addressed the Knesset, where lawmakers gave him standing ovations and chanted his name. “Generations from now, this will be remembered as the moment that everything began to change,” Trump told parliament. “Now it is time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East.”
Later Monday, Trump and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi are set to co-chair a summit in Egypt with leaders from more than 20 nations to discuss Gaza’s future and wider regional stability.
Hamas-led militants abducted about 250 people in the , in which nearly 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed.
Israel’s offensive in Gaza since the attacks has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s Health Ministry. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but the United Nations and multiple humanitarian organizations consider the casualty numbers broadly reliable.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
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