From the Bibas brothers to the soldier Liri Albag: the hostages who will leave Gaza after the agreement

Both children have become in these 15 months of captivity two of the most recognizable faces of the hostages and appear on the list delivered by Hamas to Israel last week with the names of the 34 kidnapped people who would release in the first phase of the ceasefireleaked to some media. Among them, there are also ten women, eleven elderly people and another eleven men under 50 years of age.

However, the Bibas’ loved ones have expressed their doubts this Wednesday about the possibility of being reunited with Kfir and Ariel and their parents. “We are aware of reports that our family is included in the first phase of the agreement, and that Shiri [la madre] and the children are among the first to be released. Given our experience in disappointments, We do not consider anything definitive until they cross the border,” they stated in a statement.

«We are awaiting certainty about his release and his condition, and we ask that we not be contacted during this delicate moment. We request that people refrain from spreading rumors. We continue to appeal to the prime minister and demand the return of everyone, until the last hostage is home,” they conclude.

Among the hostages is also Israeli soldier Liri Albag19 years old, captured at the Nahal Oz military post on October 7 and whose proof of life Hamas published in early January. In the video, the young woman claimed to have been in captivity for 450 days and scolded the Israeli Army for ignoring her condition: “We are not a priority for our Government or our Army. Even the world has begun to forget us and does not care about our suffering.

They were all part of the group of 251 hostages captured during the Hamas attacks on October 7, of which 94 remain in Gaza, according to the AFP news agency. Among these almost a hundred people, there are also the bodies of around 34 citizens that the Israeli Army considers dead.

It is the case of Judith and Gadi Haggaia 70-year-old couple, murdered in Niz Or. His death was confirmed in December 2023 and, since then, his family has been fighting to recover their bodies, which remain in Gaza.

Of the 60 hostages believed to be alive, ten are womenAccording to the BBC: Emily Damari, Doron Steinbrecher, Daniela Gilboa, Agam Berger, Adrienne Siegel, Shiri Bibas, Karina Ariev, Liri Albag, Romi Gonen and Naama Levy. The latter, a 20-year-old girl, was forced to ride an SUV with her hands tied behind her back on October 7, according to images published by Hamas and later disseminated through social networks.

Among the kidnapped, There are also elders, like Gadi Moses, 80 years old, who was also captured in Niz Or, where he worked as an agricultural expert and where his partner, Efrat Katz, was murdered during the attack. His family explained to the ‘Times of Israel’ newspaper that they had not received any information about him since December 2023, when he appeared in a Hamas propaganda video. Of a similar age is another of the captives, Oded Lifshitz: an 84-year-old retired journalist who was imprisoned in the same kibbutz along with his wife, Yocheved, who was released in October 2023.

To the 94 kidnapped on October 7, 2023, we must add another four, captured in 2014 and 2015. In turn, the Government of Thailand affirms that six of its citizens are still held hostage in Gaza: Watchara Sriuan, Bannawat Seatho, Sathian Suwannakham, Nattapong Pinta, Pongsak Tanna and Surasak Lamnau.

Families’ reaction

For their part, the families of the hostages have not been slow to react to the announcement of the truce agreement: “We welcome immense joy and relief the agreement to bring our loved ones home. “We wish to express our deep gratitude to President-elect Trump, President Biden, both administrations, and international mediators for making this possible.”

“Since November 2023, we have been anxiously awaiting this moment and now, after more than 460 days of our relatives being held in Hamas tunnels, we are closer than ever to meeting with our loved ones,” they add.

And they continue: «This is an important step that brings us closer to the return of all the hostages: the living for rehabilitation and the dead for proper burial. However, we are accompanied by deep anxiety and concern about the possibility that the agreement will not be fully implemented and that they will be abandoned. We urgently call for swift action to ensure that all phases of the agreement are carried out. “We will not rest until we see the last hostage home.”

Three people a day

The truce reached between Israel and Hamas, confirmed this Wednesday afternoon by the Prime Minister of Qatar, has an initial phase of six weeks and includes the gradual release of the hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. This first stage foresees the return home of 33 kidnapped peopleincluding all women, children and men over 50 years of age.

The agreement, which proposes the release of at least three people each week, will come into force next January 19. Negotiations on the implementation of the second phase will begin on the 16th of the first phase and are expected to include the departure of all remaining hostages, a permanent ceasefire and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

The third phase is expected to address the return of all remaining corpses and the beginning of the reconstruction of Gaza overseen by Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations.