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On the 500th day since October 7, 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel and took hundreds of Israelis hostage, a number of families of current and former hostages rallied across Israel with supporters, organizing fasts and protests to demand the release of the remaining 70 hostages. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum organized a 500-minute fast and roadblocks across the country, as families voiced their anguish and called for action.

After 498 days in captivity, three hostages who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023, have been released and safely escorted back into Israel. Sagui Dekel Chen (36), Alexander Sasha Trufanov (29), and Iair Horn (46) reunited with their families on Saturday, with Dekel Chen meeting his infant daughter for the first time.

Israeli officials confirmed the names of the three hostages who will be released this Saturday: Sagui Dekel Chen (36), Alexander Sasha Trufanov (29), and Iair Horn (46). The three men are the sixth set of hostages to be released under the hostage-release and temporary ceasefire deal. They were taken captive from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023.

Despite threats to delay release of Israeli hostages, Hamas has agreed to release three hostages on Saturday in accordance with the hostage-release and temporary ceasefire deal in place. According to a senior Arab diplomat, Hamas will not release a larger number of hostages than planned despite pressure from Israel and the United States.

Hamas announced that it would delay the planned release of Israeli hostages, falsely citing alleged Israeli violations of the hostage-ceasefire deal. Israeli officials responded by confirming that Israel has upheld the terms of the deal, arguing that Hamas’s delay is a significant violation of the deal. Hostage families are concerned that any delay will jeopardize the release of the remaining 76 hostages, many of whom may need critical medical care.

After 491 days in captivity, three hostages who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023, have been released. Eli Sharabi (52), Or Levy (34), and Ohad Ben Ami (56), appeared frail and emaciated as they were escorted back into Israel by the IDF. Levy and Sharabi returned to learn that their family members had been murdered on October 7 — Levy’s wife and Sharabi’s wife and two daughters.