'We won't gloss over the shocking scenes', warns Netanyahu as three freed by Hamas paraded on stage

8 February 2025, 09:19 | Updated: 8 February 2025, 13:52

Three more Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas as part of the ceasefire deal.

The hostages that have been released are: Eli Sharabi, 52; Ohad Ben Ami, 56; and Or Levy, 34.

All were abducted during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, that sparked the war.

The hostages appeared thin and gaunt as they were paraded on stage by Hamas.

They were surrounded by gunmen as they were interviewed, reportedly calling for Israel to stop the war and for the ceasefire to hold.

The trio were then handed over to the Red Cross.

Speaking after their release, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said: "We will not gloss over the shocking scenes that we saw today."

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The country's hostage czar, Gal Hirsch, said: "The shocking sights we saw today touch the hearts of all of us and join the living and searing memory of October 7, 2023.

"The state of Israel views Hamas' repeated violations with great severity, and the situation of the three abductees who were released this morning with great severity.

"We will not remain silent about this. A message has been passed on to the mediators and actions will be taken accordingly."

Posting on X, Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: "After 491 days of agony, 3 more hostages - including Eli Sharabi who has strong UK links - have finally been released.

"They and their families have suffered an unimaginable ordeal."The ceasefire deal must be implemented in full, including the release of the remaining hostages."

Dozens of masked and armed Hamas fighters, some driving white pick-up trucks with guns mounted on them, lined up on Saturday morning at the location of the exchange near the territory's main north-south highway in Central Gaza.

A small crowd of onlookers gathered at the scene, with a line of Hamas fighters keeping them at a distance from the stage.

Israel has since released 183 Palestinian prisoners in return.

A statement from the lawyers of the British hostage families said: "We and our clients, the Sharabi and Brisley families, are delighted that after 16 months in captivity, Eli Sharabi has today, Saturday, 8 February 2025, been released from being held as a hostage in Gaza by the Hamas terrorist organisation.

"We were saddened but unfortunately not surprised at Eli, Ohad and Or’s physical condition and the grotesque spectacle of their release, which should be a wake-up call, if one were needed, to ensure the speedy return of all of the other hostages.

"Eli’s British wife, Lianne, and their British children, Noiya and Yahel, were murdered on 7 October 2023, in their home.

"Eli’s brother Yossi, died in January 2024 in captivity. His body remains held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza."

They paid tribute to Mr Sharabi's family, saying: "We hope that they will now begin on a road to some kind of peace, and that the public will grant them the space they need to do so.

"We urge all of the parties, and the negotiators, to ensure that the Phase 1 deal completes in full, and all of the 33 listed hostages, including our client Oded Lifshitz, for whom the British Government has taken formal responsibility due to his close British connections, are released imminently."

Lawyer Adam Rose, who represents British linked hostage families including the relatives of Mr Sharabi, told LBC News: "They look absolutely awful. The good news is that they were standing up. They seem to be able to talk.

"You'll have seen they had microphones thrust in their faces and expected to give statements that were obviously pre-scripted for them. But they look incredibly gaunt.

"They look incredibly under fed and malnourished. Absolutely horrific."

It is the fifth swap of hostages for prisoners since the ceasefire began on January 19. Eighteen hostages and more than 550 Palestinian prisoners have already been freed in that time.

The first phase of the ceasefire calls for the release of 33 hostages and nearly 2,000 prisoners, the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza and an increase in humanitarian aid to the devastated territory.

Last week, wounded Palestinians were allowed to leave Gaza for Egypt for the first time since May.