Hamas frees 3 hostages, Israel releases hundreds of prisoners
Khan Younis, Feb 15 (AP): Hamas-led group released three male Israeli hostages Saturday and Israeli forces freed hundreds of prisoners in return, in the latest indication that a fragile ceasefire that had teetered in recent days is holding.
Hamas in the southern Gaza Strip paraded the three hostages — Iair Horn, 46, a dual citizen of Israel and Argentina; American-Israeli Sagui Dekel Chen, 36; and Russian-Israeli Alexander (Sasha) Troufanov, 29 — before a crowd before releasing them. They were transported to Israel to be reunited with their families and to receive medical evaluation in a hospital.
All had been abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz, a community that was hard-hit in the October 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war. They appeared pale and worn, but seemed in better physical condition than the three men released last Saturday, who emerged emaciated from 16 months of captivity.
A tense dispute had jeopardised the nearly four week-old truce in recent days and threatened to renew the fighting.
US President Donald Trump's controversial proposal to remove more than 2 million Palestinians from Gaza and settle them elsewhere in the region has cast even more doubt on the future of the ceasefire.
But Hamas said Thursday it would move ahead with the release of more hostages after talks with Egyptian and Qatari officials. The group said the mediators had pledged to “remove all hurdles” to ensure Israel would allow more tents, medical supplies and other essentials into Gaza.
As with previous exchanges, the hostage release was heavily choreographed, with the captives made to walk onto a stage and speak into microphones before the crowd. Dozens of masked, armed Hamas fighters lined up near the stage festooned with Palestinian flags and banners of it.
In Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, a huge cheer went up as the hostages were transferred to the Red Cross. “Iair, Sagui and Sasha are on their way home!” an announcer said.
In return for the hostages' release, Israel began releasing 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
A bus carrying the first released prisoners arrived in the occupied West Bank town of Beitunia and were greeted by a cheering crowd of relatives and supporters. Some appeared gaunt, and the Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said four were immediately taken for medical treatment.
Most of those released were transported to Gaza, where a large crowd greeted them in Khan Younis, the same town where the hostages had been released hours earlier.
It is the sixth swap since the ceasefire took effect on January 19. Before Saturday, 21 hostages and over 730 Palestinian prisoners were freed during the first phase of the truce.
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Low visibility prevents PM’s helicopter from landing in Taherpur, Modi returns to Kolkata airport
Kolkata (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s helicopter failed to land at the Taherpur helipad in West Bengal owing to low visibility on account of dense fog in the area on Saturday, an official said.
The PM’s chopper made a U-turn after hovering over the helipad ground for a while and returned to the Kolkata airport, he said.
Till reports last received, the Prime Minister was waiting at the airport for further updates on the weather situation.
It wasn’t immediately clear if Modi would reach the rally venue district by road or whether he would wait for the weather to clear up and make another attempt to reach Taherpur by the aerial route, the official said.
Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister reached Kolkata at around 10.40 am and took a chopper onward to Taherpur in Nadia district, where he is scheduled to hold an administrative programme to launch highway projects in West Bengal, followed by a political rally of the BJP, titled Parivartan Sankalpa Sabha, which he is supposed to address.
