Israel has announced the return of three hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for the past 15 months.
The individuals—31-year-old Doron Steinbrecher, 28-year-old dual British-Israeli citizen Emily Damari, and 24-year-old Romi Gonen—were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza City shortly after a ceasefire came into effect. They were then transferred to the Israeli military.
Emily Damari was seen reuniting with her mother, Amanda, in an emotional video call shared with the BBC’s Lucy Manning.
The release of the hostages came as part of an agreement where Hamas stated that for every hostage freed, 30 Palestinian prisoners would be released from Israeli jails.
The ceasefire, which began after a last-minute delay, has allowed displaced Palestinians to start returning to cities from which they had fled. However, in the hours before the truce, Israeli airstrikes continued, with the Hamas-run civil defense agency reporting 19 more deaths.
The ceasefire marks a tentative step towards reducing tensions in the region, though the situation remains precarious.
