The prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas continues. Five people were released by the terrorists today. One of them, 22-year-old Omar Shem , kissed the militiamen escorting him on the forehead shortly before being handed over to the Red Cross to return home.
The first hostages released were Tal Shoham and Avera Mengistu , who stood on a stage set up by Hamas in Rafah. Avera Mengistu has been held captive by Hamas for over a decade and is the longest-held living Israeli hostage. The 28-year-old Israeli Jew of Ethiopian origin entered Gaza in 2014, crossing the border near Zikim Beach in the north of the Strip. Tal Shoham, on the other hand, was captured on October 7, when he was visiting Kibbutz Beeri with his wife Adi and their two children, three-year-old Yahel and eight-year-old Nave. Shoham, his wife, children and four other family members were taken to Gaza. Adi and the children were released in November 2023.
The hostage Omar Shem Tov, 22, was carried by the militants to the stage set up in Nuseirat, in central Gaza. He appeared happy and smiling and, before heading home, greeted and kissed on the head two Hamas militants who were near him. Omar Wankert and Elia Cohen went up on stage immediately after.
Another release, the sixth, is scheduled for today. Hisham al-Sayed will be handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross at a third release site in Gaza City without ceremony. Hisham is an Israeli Bedouin from the village of Hura in the Negev desert and entered the Strip near the Erez crossing in April 2015. He has mental problems and has spent 3,600 days in captivity in Gaza, local media reported, citing IDF sources.
(Unioneonline/vf)
