Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Jan. 19 that Hamas had released three female hostages amid a fragile cease-fire deal that went into effect early on Jan. 19.
The women released are British Israeli hostage Emily Damari and Israeli hostages Doron Steinbrecher and Romi Gonen.
The Red Cross had earlier confirmed that the three hostages had been transferred to them and were on their way toward the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) in the Gaza Strip.
In a joint statement, the IDF and the ISA confirmed the hostage transfer.
“The three released hostages are being accompanied by IDF special forces and ISA forces on their return to Israeli territory, where they will undergo an initial medical assessment,” they wrote.
“The commanders and soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces salute and embrace the released hostages as they make their way home to the State of Israel.”
In a press conference after Israel confirmed the hostage transfer, President Joe Biden said the deal he proposed in May “has finally come to fruition.”
“The cease-fire has gone into effect in Gaza, and today we’re seeing hostages being released,” Biden said from South Carolina on Jan. 19. “Three Israeli women held against their will in the dark tunnels for 470 days.
“In this first phase, we pray for them and their families for [there’s] going to be a long recovery.”
He noted that a second phase would begin by the 16th day of deal talks, which would include the release of Israeli soldiers.
“And after so much pain, destruction, loss of life, today, the guns in Gaza have gone silent,” Biden said. “I’ve worked in foreign policy for decades, and this is one of the toughest negotiations I’ve been part of.”
Hamas previously stated that it would release three female Israeli civilian hostages on day one of the cease-fire and four more on the seventh day. It would then release three more hostages every seven days.
“[Netanyahu] instructed the IDF that the cease-fire, which is scheduled to take effect at 8:30 a.m., will not begin until Israel has the list of hostages to be released, which Hamas has pledged to provide,” his office stated.
Early on Jan. 19, the start of the cease-fire remained uncertain, as Netanyahu said Israel was still awaiting the names of the three female civilians who Hamas had stated that they would release on Jan. 19.
Discussions regarding the second and third phases are planned for a later time.
The Israel Prisons Service said in a statement late into the night that it had released 90 prisoners as per the terms of the cease-fire agreement in exchange for the three Israeli hostages.
According to Israeli news website Ynet, the prisoners include 69 women, including one minor, eight male minors, and 12 men sentenced for relatively minor offenses like incitement, identifying with terrorism, and disorderly conduct. Of them, 78 are West Bank residents, and 12 are East Jerusalem residents.
Alongside the hostages-for-prisoners exchange, Hamas is expected to halt its rocket attacks against Israel during the cease-fire period while Israel is expected to withdraw its troops to the buffer zones in Gaza toward the east, away from the populated areas.
The cease-fire will also make way for the unimpeded flow of more humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza.
Acting as a mediator alongside the United States between Israel and Hamas in the cease-fire talks, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani remarked that the agreement’s survival depends on both sides “acting in good faith in order to ensure that this agreement does not collapse.”
The Department of Defense stated that “portions of the arrangement remain sensitive” and that both Israel and Hamas have agreed to maintain open channels of communication for “further confidence-building measures.”
“The State of Israel is committed to achieving all of the objectives of the war including the return of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased,” Netanyahu’s office stated on Jan. 17 upon announcement of the deal.
Since Hamas invaded Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and kidnapped more than 250 hostages, negotiations and Israel’s rescue efforts have seen 157 hostages released, 117 of whom have been returned alive. Some of the hostages were Bedouin Arabs of the Negev.
Hamas is believed to be still holding 98 hostages. Israel estimates that a third of those are dead.
