Israel prepared on Saturday to receive six additional hostages from Gaza in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, amid tensions sparked by the return of a misidentified body earlier in the week that nearly jeopardized a fragile truce.
The six individuals, the last remaining captives from a group of 33 slated for release in the initial phase of a ceasefire agreement reached last month, were expected to be freed around 8:30 a.m. (0630 GMT), according to statements from Hamas officials.
Among those being released are Eliya Cohen, 27, Tal Shoham, 40, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Omer Wenkert, 23, all of whom were abducted during Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Also included in the exchange are Hisham Al-Sayed, 36, and Avera Mengistu, 39, who were separately taken captive after crossing into Gaza under unclear circumstances nearly a decade ago.
In return, Israel is set to release 602 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, continuing a prisoner exchange that has endured despite multiple setbacks threatening to derail the process.
Tensions escalated on Thursday when Israel accused Hamas of breaching the ceasefire by handing over an unidentified body instead of the remains of hostage Shiri Bibas, which were supposed to be returned along with those of her two young sons. Hamas claimed her remains had been mistakenly mixed with others recovered from the rubble of an Israeli airstrike that it alleged killed her and her children in November 2023. The group later provided another body on Friday, which Israeli forensic experts began analyzing to verify its identity.
The Bibas family's abduction, along with their father, during the October 7 attack has become a symbol of Israel’s anguish. The misidentification of Shiri Bibas' remains, coupled with the staged handover of her family’s coffins by Hamas, has fueled Israeli outrage.
According to Israeli military intelligence and forensic assessments, 10-month-old Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel were deliberately killed by their captors.
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to make Hamas "pay the full price" for failing to return Bibas’ body but stopped short of abandoning the ceasefire deal, which took effect on January 19.
Despite accusing Israel of violating the truce by obstructing essential aid shipments into Gaza, Hamas formally notified Israel of the hostages to be released on Saturday, signaling that the exchange would proceed as planned.
While the ceasefire has halted hostilities temporarily, the long-term prospects for ending the war remain uncertain. Hamas, which killed approximately 1,200 people and took 251 hostages during its October 7 attack, continues to assert its control in Gaza despite suffering substantial losses in the conflict.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military campaign has led to the deaths of at least 48,000 people, according to Palestinian health officials, and has devastated much of the enclave, displacing hundreds of thousands who now rely on humanitarian aid.
Both sides have signaled a willingness to negotiate a second phase of talks aimed at securing the release of around 60 remaining hostages and orchestrating an Israeli military withdrawal. However, these negotiations face significant hurdles, particularly as debates over Gaza's future are further complicated by regional uproar over a proposal attributed to former U.S. President Donald Trump, which suggested clearing Palestinians from the territory and transforming it into a luxury resort under American control.