Israel has announced the names of the three hostages set to be released Saturday, in what would be the sixth exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners under the ceasefire deal that came into effect last month. The hostages to be released are American-Israeli Sagui Dekel-Chen, Russian-Israeli Alexandre Troufanov, and Argentinian-Israeli Iair Horn.
A release of 369 Palestinian prisoners by Israel is expected to follow, as stated by Hamas’ Prisoner Media Office. Troufanov, who was kidnapped at the age of 27 from Kibbutz Nir Oz, was taken along with his grandmother, mother, and girlfriend. His father was killed during the attack. Dekel-Chen, kidnapped at 35 while defending Nir Oz, had his third daughter born while in captivity. Horn, now 46, was captured with his brother Eitan, who remains in captivity.
The announcement follows a recent dispute between Hamas and Israel over the Gaza ceasefire, which was resolved after Hamas agreed to release the hostages as planned. US President Donald Trump's suggestion to dismiss the multi-staged approach of the ceasefire deal and give Hamas an ultimatum was met with mixed responses.
Former hostages Keith Siegel and Or Levy have called for the release of remaining captives, emphasizing the urgency of the situation. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) expressed concern over the conditions of the hostages and stressed the need for dignified and safe release operations.
Israel has raised objections to the way Hamas has conducted previous releases, citing mistreatment of hostages and prisoners. The current phase of the agreement has seen the release of 16 out of 33 Israeli hostages and 656 Palestinian prisoners.
