All 20 of the Israeli hostages still alive two years after being taken hostage by Hamas have returned to Israel, following an emotional morning that commanded the attention of Jews around the world who had lobbied for their release.
Unlike in past hostage releases, Hamas did not stage release “ceremonies,” a condition of the deal the group in charge of Gaza made in striking a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal last week. But in another departure, the group provided phones for hostages waiting for Red Cross vehicles to use to call their families, creating jarring scenes of joyful conversations taking place with masked terrorists visible on screen.
The family of Bar Kupershtein released a video of him telling his ecstatic mother, “It’s OK, Mom. Don’t worry.”
Einav Zangauker, the mother of Matan Angrest, was filmed telling him, “The war is over. You’re all coming home. You are my world. I love you.”
Another photo, released by Israel, showed Gali and Ziv Berman, twins abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, reuniting after being held separately in captivity.
Alon Ohel, who was thought to have suffered injuries to his eyes, could be seen putting on sunglasses provided to him by the Israeli soldiers tasked with bringing him home.
Related: These are the 20 hostages released alive on Monday.
And Lishay Miran-Lavi, waiting for husband Omri Miran after speaking to him by FaceTime, called their two young daughters to tell them, “Daddy’s coming home.” Soon, she and her husband were reunited in person.
The hostages appeared pale and gaunt but were walking on their own and in some cases appeared to be in improved condition compared to past footage released by Hamas.
The videos and photographs elicited joyous cheers from the tens of thousands of people who gathered in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, where the site of pained prayer was transformed into a central address for jubilation. The massive “Bring Them Home” letters that had loomed over the square for most of the last two years were revised on Sunday night to say, “Welcome Back Home.”
Another crowd convened at Reim, the kibbutz near the Gaza border where many of the hostages were abducted during the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023, and which would mark their first stop in Israel en route to being reunited with their families. The gathering marked Hoshana Rabbah, the ritual to mark the end of Sukkot. Monday night marks the beginning of Simchat Torah, the Jewish holiday on which Hamas staged its attack and took roughly 250 hostages.
Of them, 37 who were killed on Oct. 7 or in captivity now remain in Gaza, along with the body of a soldier kidnapped in 2014. Under the terms of the deal, Hamas must release their bodies, too, but the group says it has not yet been able to locate all of them. Those that have been located will be released to Israel on Monday afternoon.
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