Video: Frail Appearances Of 3 Hostages Released By Hamas Shock Israelis

Three Israeli men, who were held captive in the Gaza Strip for 16 months, were released by Hamas on Saturday while Israel began freeing dozens of Palestinians as part of the truce deal. The day began in Deir al-Balah in Gaza, where Hamas handed the hostages-- Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levy and Eli Sharabi-- over to Red Cross officials --the fifth group freed under a fragile Gaza ceasefire.

Emaciated and disoriented, all three men were forced by their captors to address crowds gathered at their handover ceremony. A banner across the edge of the platform erected for the exchange declared "total victory" for Hamas in Hebrew and bore images of destroyed and rusted Israeli military vehicles.

The three Israelis the Hamas terrorist organization released are, Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami and Or Levy, had been held hostage in Gaza for 16 months.

This is the fifth exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinians jailed in Israel.
Israel is set to release 183 Palestinian… pic.twitter.com/s4B8q91vfh — Blue Owl (@BlueOwlHoots) February 8, 2025

They were later handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross which was to transport them to Israeli forces in Gaza. Their release was cheered by their families back in Israel, a video of which was shared by Israle War Room.

"He looked like a skeleton, it was awful to see," Ohad Ben Ami's mother-in-law, Michal Cohen, told Channel 13 News as she watched the Hamas-directed handover ceremony.

Families of the three released hostages watch their release from Hamas' captivity: pic.twitter.com/3fZxMnwjPc — Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) February 8, 2025

Israel's President Isaac Herzog also denounced the treatment of Israeli hostages as a "crime against humanity" after the men were paraded on stage.

"This is what a crime against humanity looks like! The whole world must look directly at Ohad, Or, and Eli -- returning after 491 days of hell, starved, emaciated and pained -- being exploited in a cynical and cruel spectacle by vile murderers," the Israeli head of state said in a statement on X.

About Israeli Hostages Freed In Truce Swap

Ami and Sharabi were both taken hostage from Kibbutz Be'eri during the cross-border Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, while Levy was abducted that day from the Nova music festival.

Ohad Ben Ami -- was abducted with his wife Raz Ben Ami from their home in kibbutz Beeri. Images have circulated on social media showing him being seized in a T-shirt and underwear. His wife, Ben Ami, who has dual Israeli and German citizenship, was released during a one-week truce in November 2023.

Eli Sharabi -- Sharabi, who will turn 53 in February, was at his home in kibbutz Beeri with his British-born wife and their two teenage daughters when Hamas attacked it on October 7, 2023. The armed men shot their dog, before locking the family in their safe room and setting it on fire. The bodies of his wife and two daughters were later identified.

He was taken to Gaza along with his brother Yossi. The Israeli military said early last year that Yossi was killed and his body was in the hands of Hamas in Gaza.

Or Levy -- Levy and his wife Einav Levy went to the Nova music festival, leaving their two-year-old son Almog with his grandparents. The usually inseparable couple, who met in high school, tried to hide from the Hamas attackers along Route 232, the only path away from the festival.

"When gunfire erupted shortly after their arrival, they sought refuge in a concrete safe room, later known as 'the death bunker'. There, Einav was murdered, and Or was taken captive," the Hostage and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

Israel Releases Palestinian Prisoners

In exchange for the hostages' release, The Hamas-run Prisoners' Media Office said Israel is freeing 183 Palestinian prisoners, some convicted of involvement in attacks that killed dozens of people, as well as 111 detained in Gaza during the war.

"This release marks a new milestone in the ongoing struggle to free all prisoners," the statement said.

Before today, at least 383 prisoners had been freed as part of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, which came into force last month.

What The Deal Says?

Since the truce took effect on January 19, 16 Israeli and dual-national hostages have been freed, as have five Thais outside of the agreement.

A total of 33 hostages, eight of whom Israel says are dead, are set to be released during the first 42-day phase of the deal in exchange for approximately 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

The fate of the remaining children held in Gaza -- Kfir Bibas and his brother Ariel -- as well as their mother Shiri Bibas, remains unknown.