A first group of around ten Israeli hostages was released by Hamas this Friday. In addition, 12 Thai hostages have already been released.
A first group of Israeli hostages are now in the hands of Red Cross personnel and are in ambulances en route to Israel’s Rafah crossing, an Israeli official said, according to the Times of Israel. 13 women and children held by Hamas since the start of the war must be released in exchange for 39 Palestinian prisoners. At the same time, the Thai Prime Minister announced the release of 12 of his compatriots, until now held hostage by Hamas.
The Israelis must be handed over to their country’s security officials, accompanied by the Red Cross and supervised by Egyptians, at the Rafah border crossing. They will then be transported to Al-Arish airport to fly to the Jewish state. The released hostages will be taken care of by the Israeli health services.
While the United States anticipated the release of three of its nationals, an American official indicated to CNN that none of their citizens will be released this Friday, without however excluding a release during the next days of truce. France has not provided a figure for the number of French nationals released and whether the release of three people was mentioned by a source. BFMTV, there is nothing to confirm it. Regardless of the hostages returned, the families have been informed and are waiting to reunite with their loved ones in Tel Aviv this evening.
The truce respected
At the same time, the truce continues without deviation in Gaza. The fighting and airstrikes stopped at 7 a.m. (6 a.m. in France) this Friday, November 24. If a few rocket shots were heard a few minutes after the humanitarian pause came into force, the truce seems respected by Israel and Hamas in the 49th war. It must last at least four days.
The delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza also began this Friday morning. The Egyptian authorities stated in a statement that “200 trucks loaded with food, medicine and water will enter daily” into Gaza, with them “some 130,000 liters of diesel fuel and four tankers carrying gas will enter” each day. This is considerable and necessary aid, but remains insufficient given the needs according to several humanitarian NGOs, especially since this truce does not signal the end of the war. Tensions are also palpable despite the cessation of strikes: the Israeli army is keeping its positions and has dropped leaflets specifying that the war is not over and that travel in the Gaza Strip remains prohibited.
How are the hostages released?
The first releases of hostages took place this Friday, November 24, announced the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During the four-day truce, Israeli hostages will be released in groups of ten in exchange for 30 Palestinian prisoners. The exchanges take place at the Rafah border post where a first medical examination is carried out and a call with the victims’ families is authorized. The hostages are then taken to Tel Aviv at the end of the afternoon. The Egyptian authorities indicated to AFP that an Egyptian security delegation is present in Jerusalem and Ramallah to ensure “compliance with the list” of released Palestinian prisoners.
At least 50 hostages must be released in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners. But Israel hopes to be able to recover more hostages and has warned that “the release of ten additional hostages will result in an additional day of pause.” However, as reported The Time of Israelthis truce will not exceed ten days, and both camps have already announced the resumption of fighting at the end of this period of calm.
What awaits the hostages after their release
After six weeks of captivity, the first Hamas hostages are to be released between November 24 and 28, but despite their release, a return to normal life will not happen immediately. Initially, medical treatment is considered because we still do not know the physical and psychological state of these people.
According to i24News, their release takes place through the Rafah crossing point. Once there, repatriation by Israeli army helicopters or ambulances is planned. People are taken to different Israeli hospitals, such as “Sheba in Ramat Gan, Ichilov in Tel Aviv, Schneider in Petah Tikva, Wolfson in Holon, Soroka in Beer Sheva and Assaf Harofeh in Beer Yaacov”, lists i24News. On site, numerous doctors of all specialties await them, from surgeons to ophthalmologists, including pediatricians, psychologists and gynecologists. A first medical examination is given to them before they can even reunite with their loved ones. Blood tests, CT scans and MRIs are being considered. Finally, everything is done so that they can reunite with their loved ones in complete privacy, far from the spotlight and especially the media.
Once back on their feet and these examinations carried out, the former Hamas hostages will be able to return to their daily lives, with regular follow-up with doctors and psychologists, assures i24News, which reports that, in a second phase, and only “when they will feel sufficiently ready”, the Israeli intelligence services will come and talk to them to obtain information.
A kindness which would be more linked to the profile of the released hostages, namely children and women, i.e. people who were never prepared to experience such events. And for good reason, normally, when hostages are released, the interrogations are generally carried out immediately. Nearby ParisianÉric Denécé, director of the French Intelligence Research Center (CF2R), believes that this choice of not immediately questioning them is quite significant: “It is a sign that the Israeli intelligence services are not waiting much two.”
The agreement and the truce far from being unanimous in Israel
Like the United States, France and a whole part of the international community, the entire European Union was delighted at the conclusion of an agreement on the humanitarian truce and the latter wishes to “take advantage of this pause in order to organize a surge in humanitarian aid to Gaza” and “intensify” the sending of aid. The agreement is, however, far from unanimously supported by the Israeli government or the civilian population, with some seeing this agreement as a new victory for Hamas. The Association of Victims of Terrorism in Almagor has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court of Israel for full details of the agreement to be shared, including those on “the cessation of the collection of intelligence, as well as the delivery of fuel and other supplies that could help Hamas carry out terrorist operations” against Israel, reports the Times of Israel.
If the release of Palestinian prisoners is difficult to achieve, it is above all the pause in the fighting which displeases Israeli politicians and soldiers. They fear that the truce will allow Hamas to resupply with weapons, restore communications and reorganize for a counter-offensive. But a few days will not be enough to regain significant strength and military gains for Hamas appear limited, according to former officer Guillaume Ancel at Parisian. On the other hand, the Islamist group could benefit from humanitarian aid and fuel convoys, as some Israeli decision-makers fear. Another possibility: that Hamas takes advantage of the truce to disappear and reach the south of Gaza discreetly as suggested by retired general and military expert Dominique Trinquand in the Ile-de-France newspaper. But this plan does not seem to fit with Hamas’s own ideology of struggle.
End or continuation of the fighting in Gaza? Point position
The humanitarian truce postponed until Friday, the fighting continued this Thursday in the Gaza Strip. Spokespersons for the Israeli army continue to report on their progress and indicate that they have “discovered underground infrastructure and weapons under children’s beds” in the premises on the outskirts of the Jabaliya camp. The Tsahla also confirmed the arrest of the director of Al-Shifa hospital, beaten and searched by the Israeli army. The doctor must be “transferred for questioning” by the intelligence services, according to the press release. The IDF believes that “under the direction [du médecin arrêté, ndlr] the hospital has been the scene of numerous Hamas terrorist activities.”
The war is therefore far from over and both Hamas and Israel have already confirmed the resumption of fighting following the prisoner exchanges. “The Israeli government, Israeli army and security forces will continue the war to return all abductees, eliminate Hamas and ensure that there is no further threat to the State of Israel from Gaza,” writes the Hebrew State in its press release. While Hamas confirms that its hands “will remain on the trigger and that [les] triumphant battalions will remain on the lookout”, promising to lead the fight for “the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital”.
What is the outcome of the war between Israel and Hamas?
The results of the war taking place in Gaza are difficult to establish, as the figures provided by Hamas cannot be independently verified and therefore distinguished from propaganda. According to the latest report from the Hamas Ministry of Health communicated Thursday, November 23, 14,854 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip, including more than 6,150 children, since the start of the conflict on October 7. The Palestinian movement also reported more than 36,000 injured. Questioned about this assessment several weeks ago, the Pentagon spokesperson admitted that, concerning civilian victims in Gaza, “it [fallait] count in thousands.
On the Israeli side, the death toll from the Hamas attack was revised downwards on Friday, November 10, from 1,400 to 1,200 dead. According to the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after identification of the bodies, it appeared that many of them belonged to Hamas men. Before that, the Israeli army had also specified that 46 soldiers had died since the attack on October 7, according to its latest report.
How many French victims in the war?
40 French people were killed in Israel during Hamas attacks on October 7, according to the latest report communicated by Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne on Monday November 6. It also has eight nationals missing. “It is now confirmed that some of them are hostages of Hamas,” the government said on November 6. Paris ensures that it is doing everything possible to save the hostages and repatriate nationals who wish to do so. The Quai d’Orsay announced on November 14 that a total of 112 French people have been evacuated from the Gaza Strip to date. “This assessment marks the end of a first phase of our evacuation operations, which enabled almost all of our compatriots wishing to leave Gaza to do so,” the ministry spokesperson said in a statement.