GAZA hostages will walk free from Hamas hell on Sunday after Israel’s security cabinet finally signed off on a ceasefire deal last night.
Three unidentified women will be the first to be released by the terror group, 15 months after they were snatched during the October 7 massacres.
British captive Emily Damari, 28, is known to be on a list of 33 hostages earmarked for freedom in phased releases planned over the next four weeks.
Hamas caused ongoing distress to the families of the individuals detained last night by withholding information on the order of release and their condition – whether they are safe or deceased.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained that the security cabinet’s decision was made “after considering all political, security, and humanitarian factors,” following the accomplishment of the “war objectives.”
Last minute glitches were ironed out with Hamas terror chiefs after Netanyahu accused them of “last-minute blackmail” on Thursday.
Brit Emily’s mum Mandy, from Surrey, is understood to have been told that her daughter has been listed to release.
Emily, a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur who sustained injuries in Gaza and received support from her team’s fans as well as fans of their rival, Arsenal.
At a recent game, supporters carrying yellow balloons sang: “She’s one of our own, she’s one of our own, Emily Damari, bring Emily home!”
The ceasefire is expected to come into effect on Sunday at 12.15pm triggering the first phase of the deal – with the first three releases at 4pm, or 2pm UK time.
Four more hostages will be returned on the seventh day then every week for a period of four weeks.
Finally, 14 hostages will be returned in the sixth week from the group of 33 made up of 12 women and children, 10 men over the age of 50 and 11 younger men.
Negotiations will start again to secure the release of 65 hostages still in Gaza on the 16th day of the ceasefire.
Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners will be released in return for the hostages – sparking fury among right-wing members of the Israeli cabinet who have refused to support the deal.
Fears have therefore risen that Israel could be releasing Hamas’ new terrorist mastermind from prison – especially as the organisation’s dead leader Yahya Sinwar spent over 22 years in Israeli jails.
The ruthless terrorist was released in 2011 as a part of a prison swap deal involving the release of 1,027 Palestinian and Israeli Arab prisoners in exchange for Israli soldier, Gilad Shalit.
But Sinwar’s time in prison didn’t soften his stance on Hamas terrorism and instead escalated his commitment to the group, eventually leading to him plotting the October 7 massacre.
Crucial talks to establish a new government in the 25-mile coastal strip have yet to take shape – and mammoth rebuilding will be needed after whole neighbourhoods were reduced to rubble.
Israel’s occupation has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians since terrorists denoted the conflict by killing 1,200 on October 7, according to Hamas.
The terror group said yesterday that 100 more Palestinians including women and children have been killed in Israeli raids since the ceasefire was first announced on Wednesday.
BRING EMILY HOME
British captive Emily Damari will be released as part of the deal between Israel and Hamas, Israeli media reports.
The Spurs fan was shot in the hand and suffered shrapnel wounds to the leg when she was snatched from the Kfar Aza kibbutz village on October 7.
But freed hostages later revealed Emily had helped cheer up other captives in Gaza’s terror tunnels.
She is second on a list of 34 names earmarked for release by Hamas.
Her South London- born mum has desperately campaigned for her daughter’s release who was kidnapped from her home by Hamas alongside her twin brothers Ziv and Gali Berman, 27.
Speaking to The Sun back in October, Mandy Damari, 63, said: “It is breaking my heart a little more, day by day. Soon there will be nothing left of my heart – or Emily.”
The mum had also sent an agonising letter to prime minister Keir Starmer asking him to use everything in his power to get it delivered through intermediaries to her daughter in Gaza.
Following the announcement of the ceasefire deal, shared photos of football fans at an Arsenal v Tottenham match who had messages of support for her daughter
She wrote on X: “You have come together to say ‘bring her home’. Thank you.”
THREE-PHASE AGREEMENT
The ceasefire is built around a three-phase plan aiming to put an end to the conflict in the Middle East.
The first phase involves a complete six-week ceasefire that includes the withdrawal of Israeli troops from central Gaza.
It will focus on the release of 33 hostages, including women, children, and the elderly, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
List of hostages Hamas says will release
WOMEN AND CHILDREN:
- Romi Gonen, 23
- Emily Damari, 27
- Arbel Yehud, 29
- Doron Steinbrecher, 31
- Ariel Bibas, 5
- Kfir Bibas, 1
- Shiri Silberman Bibas, 33
- Liri Albag, 19
- Karina Ariev, 20
- Agam Berger, 21
- Danielle Gilboa, 20
- Naama Levy, 20
REST OF THE MEN:
- Ohad Ben-Ami, 58
- Gadi Moshe Moses, 80
- Keith Siegel, 65
- Ofer Calderon, 54
- Eli Sharabi, 52
- Itzik Elgarat, 70
- Shlomo Mansour, 86
- Ohad Yahalomi, 50
- Youssef Hamis Ziyadne, 54
- Oded Lifshitz, 84
- Tsahi Idan, 50
Source: Times of Israel
The hostages released in the initial 42 days are reportedly those in critical condition – including one-year-old Kfir Bibas.
The next to be freed will be female civilians and female soldiers before finally the remaining civilian men, Channel 12 reports.
Humanitarian aid is expected to flood the region, with 600 trucks of supplies entering Gaza daily.
An end to the war is the goal of the second stage as the temporary ceasefire is set to become permanent.
The second phase will see Hamas release the remaining hostages, primarily male soldiers, in exchange for further prisoner releases and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Over 1,000 Palestinian security prisoners are set to be freed – including at least 250 terrorists – in return for the hostages, Times of Israel reports.
In the third and final phase, the bodies of hostages who did not survive captivity will be returned to their families.
In exchange, Gaza would receive a three- to five-year reconstruction plan overseen by international authorities.
What happened on October 7?
ON OCTOBER 7, 2023, Hamas launched a brutal surprise attack on Israel, marking one of the darkest days in the nation’s history.
Terrorists stormed across the border from Gaza, killing over 1,200 people — most of them civilians — and kidnapping 250 others, including women, children, and the elderly.
The coordinated assault saw heavily armed fighters infiltrate Israeli towns, kibbutzim, and military bases, unleashing indiscriminate violence.
Innocent families were slaughtered in their homes, and graphic footage of the atrocities spread across social media, leaving the world in shock.
The massacre triggered a swift and massive retaliatory response from Israel, escalating into a full-scale war.
The attack not only reignited long-standing tensions in the region but also left deep scars on both sides of the conflict, setting the stage for the 15 months of devastation that followed.
