When the mother of one of the Thai hostages held in the Gaza Strip for over a year caught sight of her son on a Facebook livestream after his release Thursday, he had changed so much that she didn’t recognize him at first.

Hamas released eight hostages, including three Israelis and five Thais, as part of a hostage-for-prisoner exchange.

Israel delayed the release of 110 Palestinian prisoners for several hours after broadcast images showed crowds jostling and cheering in Gaza as Israeli and Thai hostages were handed over to the Red Cross earlier that day.

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas freed eight hostages on Thursday as part of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, but the chaotic handover of some of the captives, who were shuttled through a rowdy crowd of thousands by masked militants, drew an angry protest from Israel.

Three Israeli hostages and five Thai nationals held by Hamas in Gaza since the 7 October 2023 have been released. Agam Berger, a 20-year-old Israeli soldier, was reunited with her family at a military base in southern Israel after being handed over by armed Palestinian fighters to the Red Cross in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Thursday.

Benjamin Netanyahu decried the “unimaginable cruelty” of Hamas after a mob abused and threatened an Israeli hostage during her release on Thursday.

An Israeli hostage held for more than a year by Hamas in Gaza was released Thursday morning, marking the first of eight hostages held by the Iran-proxy militia expected to be released throughout t

Hamas is set to free three more Israeli hostages as well as five Thai captives, and Israel is to release another 110 Palestinian prisoners, in the third such exchange since a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip took hold earlier this month.

Militants in the Gaza Strip have released eight hostages, handing them over to the Red Cross amid chaotic crowds as part of a swap in which 110 Palestinians are to be released from Israeli prisons lat