Israel released 110 Palestinian prisoners yesterday, including some who had been convicted of deadly attacks, after an anarchic hostage handover in Gaza that cast doubt on whether the exchange would go ahead.
Hamas released three Israeli and five Thai hostages who had spent more than a year in captivity. One release, in Gaza’s north, went relatively smoothly. But in the southern city of Khan Younis, the hostages were surrounded by crowds, some of whom chanted support for Hamas.
In Thailand, the families of the released hostages, who worked in Israel as farmhands, shed tears of joy. “When we are happy, we cry,” one father said. “When we are sad, we also cry. But these are happy tears.”
The group confirmed that Muhammad Deif, the leader of its military wing in Gaza and one of the chief architects of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, was dead. Israel had previously said that he died in the bombing of a compound in July.
