In turn, Israel will release a batch of imprisoned Palestinians. Today’s exchange between Hamas and Israel will mark the fourth such swap since the two sides agreed to a ceasefire deal last month. Around 80 hostages are still being held by Hamas militants in Gaza.
American Israeli Keith Siegel is among the hostages set to be released Saturday, Hamas said statement Friday, as part of the fourth hostage-prisoner exchange with Israel.
Yarden Bibas and Ofer Kalderon will also be released, according to Hamas’ statement.
Siegel, 65, was last seen in a video released by Hamas in April, where he spoke directly to his family to say he was doing OK. Originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Siegel was taken from kibbutz Kfar Aza in southern Israel during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack in which some 250 people were kidnapped and about 1,200 killed.
