First 3 Israeli hostages freed in Gaza ceasefire

Three hostages were released in the first phase of a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel. The hostages, all women, were released from a Red Cross prison in Gaza on Sunday and transferred to the Israeli army, the Israeli army said.

About 100 hostages, dead or alive, are believed to be still being held captive in Gaza, most of them captured in a deadly Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The three thirty of them will be released during the first six. – a week of ceasefire, including military women and civilians, children, men over 50 and the sick and wounded, according to the agreement.

Here’s what we know about the three hostages released on Sunday:

Romi Gonen

Ms Gonen was 23 when she was arrested as she tried to leave the Nova music festival in southern Israel when Hamas attacked. At the time, he spoke to his mother, Meirav Gonen, who he said had been shot and was bleeding.

Last February, Meirav Gonen released a video of his last phone call with his daughter. He told Israeli media that Romi was a strong, happy person who often went to raves.

In the first week of the war, his mother expressed concern that Israeli military operations in Gaza could endanger the hostages.

Romi Gonen’s older brother, Yarden, told The New York Times in February that he regularly went to a stadium in Tel Aviv where the hostage’s family was performing.

“None of us do anything related to our past lives,” he said.

Emily Damari

Ms Damari, 27 at the time of her capture, was the only British hostage still being held in January. He was taken to his home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza in southern Israel and found by neighbors in his car, driven by a militant, to Gaza.

Ms. Damari was raised in Israel but travels frequently to Britain, according to her British-born mother, Mandy Damari, who was in Israel in December to speak to authorities and the media and to plead for hostages and ceasefires. He said his daughter had been shot and feared for her life, telling the BBC he welcomed threats from President-elect Donald J. Trump that “all hell will break loose” if a deal is not reached on the inauguration. him. .

Last January, a hostage freed from Gaza, Dafna Elyakim, told Israeli media that she and her younger sister were taken to a Hamas underground tunnel, where they met among the other female hostages including Mrs. Damari.

On the eve of the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks, Mandy Damari spoke at an event in London’s Hyde Park, where she described her daughter as a football fan who enjoyed a drink and had “ classic English sense of humor, with a touch of cynicism. chutzpa israeli a wedge thrown in a dose.

Doron Steinbrecher

Mrs. Steinbrecher, who was 30 when she was arrested in her home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza, is a veterinarian with Romanian and Israeli citizenship. According to Israeli media, he was in contact with his family on the kibbutz when the militants attacked, telling his parents that they had broken their window and shot them in their room.

“They’re here, they’ve got me,” he said in a text message to a friend.

Last January, Hamas released a video of Ms. Steinbrecher and two other prisoners, Daniella Gilboa and Karina Ariev, pleading for their release.

Last March, at the age of 31, the Jewish News Syndicate published an interview with her mother, Simona Steinbrecher, who described her as pale and thin in the video. He said he was concerned that Ms. Steinbrecher was not getting the medication she needed every day, although she did not specify what it was.

“She’s a strong woman, but it’s horrible to be there,” said Simona Steinbrecher.