The Hamas terror group has released four Israeli soldiers held in Gaza since the October 7 attack. This is the second exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners in a fragile ceasefire that began last weekend.
There and here in Hostage Square, there is joy and relief. You may hear some Israelis cheering. Are people crying with their hands over their faces right now? Others are crying with these four hostages who are returning home after 476 days of captivity and the moment of our liberation has arrived.
We would like to show you now. These four young female soldiers. They walked out of the Hamas neighborhood and across Palestine Square, the largest square in Gaza City. They were smiling, shaking hands and at least physically healthy.
Then they were handed over to the Red Cross. Their names are Liri Alog, 19, Karina Arv, 20, Daniela Gilboa, and Naama Levi. I want to point out that this release was very different from the news of the first hostage release last Sunday.
Today’s rally was a much more well-organized show of force by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, uh, they had more fighters and significantly they were together, uh, there was a much larger crowd of spectators, even a stage with a banner that read “Zionism will not prevail” and it may now raise questions here in Israel and indeed around the world about how successful Israel’s 15-month bombardment of Gaza has actually been and what the Israeli military can do in response to the video we are watching today.
For the friends and families of the hostages, they were just delighted, watching it from home and from here in Hostage Square, those women have now been taken to a hospital in Tel Aviv and will be reunited with their families later today.
Israel is expecting at least 200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, 89 hostages still remain in Gaza, seven of them Americans, three are believed to be alive, and information on the next hostage release if the ceasefire still holds is expected next weekend, and people here are hopeful and anxious.
