Ambulances outside the Schneider medical center in Tel Aviv on Nov. 24. Photo by Erik Marmor/Getty Images

By Laura E. Adkins November 24, 2023

Twenty-four hostages captured by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 have been released Friday.

The number includes 13 Israeli hostages released as part of a deal for a four-day cease-fire. Also on Friday Hamas released 10 Thai hostages and one Filipino citizen in a deal brokered with Egypt, according to The Red Cross.

All but one of the Israeli hostages released on Nov. 24 were taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Approximately one-quarter of the kibbutz’s residents were killed, kidnapped or injured on Oct. 7.

Danielle Aloni, 44, and her daughter Emilia, 6, were among the hostages who crossed into Israel on Friday night. Several members of the Aloni family are believed to still be held by Hamas in Gaza.

Members of Kibbutz Nir Oz confirmed from video taken at the border crossing that Margalit Mozes, 78, and Adina Moshe, 72, were also among those released.

Several members of the Munder family have also been released: 9-year-old Ohad Munder-Zichri, his mother Karen, 54, and his grandmother Ruti, 78.

Others released include Aviv Katz Asher, 2, Raz  Katz Asher, 4, and their mother Doron Katz Asher, 34. Also Channa Peri, 79, Chana Katzir, 77, and Yaffa Adar, 85.

The Israeli hostages who were freed were reunited with the surviving members of their families at Israeli hospitals, where they will receive at least 48 hours of medical observation. The mothers and children so far appear to be in good physical condition, according to a statement from Schneider Children’s hospital. Some of the older women are “feeble and exhausted,” and unlikely to be sent home tomorrow. 

The first batch of 39 prisoners previously held by Israel, all women and minors, has also been released, per Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari.

Each day of the cease-fire, Israel will receive a list around 4 p.m. of the new hostages to be released, according to Haaretz, and notify their families. Hamas has the option to extend the cease-fire by releasing an additional 10 hostages per day.

“We are committed to the return of all our hostages,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement following the release.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount