Israel frees Palestinian prisoners after Hamas returns bodies of 4 hostages

Hamas handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages in exchange for over 600 Palestinian prisoners. Israel is conducting DNA tests to confirm the identities of Shlomo Mansour, Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, and Itzik Elgarat, who were taken captive in the October 7, 2023, attacks.

Early Thursday, Israel began releasing Palestinian prisoners, with dozens arriving in the occupied West Bank and Gaza to cheering crowds. This marks the last exchange of the first phase of the ceasefire, set to end on Saturday.

Israeli media reported the hostages’ remains were moved to a forensics lab in Tel Aviv. The handover followed a previous incident where Hamas mistakenly returned a Palestinian woman’s body instead of Israeli hostage Shiri Bibas, sparking outrage in Israel. Hamas later corrected the error.

Unlike previous prisoner exchanges, Hamas transferred the latest bodies privately. Israel had accused Hamas of staging “humiliating” handover ceremonies and had delayed last weekend’s release, citing mistreatment of hostages. A Hamas official said the private transfer aimed to prevent Israel from using it as an excuse to delay the deal.

Photos showed buses leaving Israel’s Ofer prison carrying Palestinian detainees. Some arrived in the West Bank, where large crowds gathered in Ramallah to welcome them. Others reached a hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza. Among those freed were over 400 Gazans arrested during the war and 50 prisoners serving life sentences.

Israeli authorities said more prisoners would be released from Ketziot prison in southern Israel and Ofer prison. Hamas’ Prisoners’ Media Office confirmed that hospitals in Gaza were preparing to receive the freed Palestinians.

One of the returned hostages, Tsachi Idan, was taken from his home in Nahal Oz, near Gaza. His 18-year-old son, Maayan, was killed in the attack. His family said they were devastated by the confirmation of his death.

Itzik Elgarat, 69, was kidnapped from Nir Oz. He was reportedly shot in the hand before being taken to Gaza. Ohad Yahalomi, 50, was abducted from the same area. His 12-year-old son, Eitan, was released during the November ceasefire.

Shlomo Mansour, 86, was an Iraq-born Israeli. The IDF had informed his family in February that he was killed on October 7 and taken to Gaza.

The prisoner exchange concludes this phase of the ceasefire, but it remains uncertain if the truce will continue or move to the next stage, where Hamas would release all remaining living hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners.

Negotiations for phase two were supposed to begin during this phase, but talks have yet to start. Mediators resolved an earlier deadlock between Israel and Hamas over the nature of hostage handovers.

The release of 600 Palestinian prisoners had been delayed until Israel ensured the next transfer would not include what it described as degrading ceremonies.

On Wednesday, thousands of Israelis attended the funeral procession of Shiri Bibas and her sons, Ariel, 4, and Kfir, 9 months, the youngest of the 251 hostages taken on October 7. Their remains were buried next to Bibas’ parents, who were killed in the same attack.

The war, triggered by Hamas’ October 7 assault, has resulted in over 1,200 Israeli deaths and more than 48,000 deaths in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.