Hamas released three more Israeli hostages Saturday under the cease-fire deal, following a rancorous exchange where each side accused the other of violating the fragile truce’s terms.
The civilians — Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami, and Or Levy — were handed off by the terror group to members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, which has been coordinating the hostage releases in Gaza.
Sharabi, 52, was abducted by Hamas from his home in Kibbutz Be’eri during Hamas’ harrowing Oct. 7, 2023 rampage across southern Israel.
During the bloody attack, terrorists murdered Sharabi’s wife and teen daughters, who had been hiding in their family’s safe room. His brother, Yossi, was also taken hostage and later died in Gaza, where his body is still being held.
Ben Ami, 56, also a resident of Kibbutz Be’eri, was kidnapped on Oct. 7 alongside his wife, Raz, who was later freed during the November 2023 cease-fire.
Levy, 34, was taken hostage during the Nova music festival slaughter near Kibbutz Re’im, where the terrorists murdered at least 260 people, including his wife, Eynav. The couple’s now-3-year-old son, Almog, has been in the care of Levy’s parents.
In return for the three men’s freedom, Israel is expected to release 183 Palestinians prisoners, including 18 who had been serving life sentences and 54 serving long sentences, Hamas said Friday.
The swap marks the fifth round of hostage-for-prisoner exchanges since the cease-fire deal went into effect Jan. 19.
The deal began with a six-week truce, during which Hamas agreed to free 33 hostages, beginning with Israeli female civilians and soldiers, followed by men over 50 and those whose are severely ill, in exchange for more than 1,900 Palestinians jailed or detained by Israel.
So far, the terror group has given up 21 hostages, including five Thai citizens who were kidnapped during the Oct. 7 attack. There are 76 captives remaining in Gaza, around 30 of whom are presumed dead.
Saturday’s hand-off, however, followed the latest crisis threatening to upend the tenuous cease-fire.
On Friday, Israel ripped into Hamas for failing to share the list of hostages’ names at least 24 hours before they were to be released.
Hamas, meanwhile, alleged Israel was violating the cease-fire deal by blocking crucial aid from being delivered to Gaza, prompting the terror group to delay sharing the hostages’ names.
The ongoing truce brought a pause to 15 months of ruinous warfare sparked by the terror group’s brutal massacre of 1,200 Israelis, and kidnapping of another 251.
With Post wires
