Israel and Hamas completed their fifth hostage-prisoner swap under a fragile Gaza ceasefire deal on Saturday, with the frail, disoriented appearance of the three freed Israelis sparking dismay among their relatives.
Out of the 183 inmates released by Israel in return, the Palestinian Prisoners鈥� Club advocacy group said seven required hospitalisation, decrying 鈥榖rutality鈥� and mistreatment in jail.
The fifth exchange since the truce took effect last month comes as negotiations are set to begin on the next phase of the ceasefire, which should pave the way for a permanent end to the war.
Saturday鈥檚 swap also follows remarks by president Donald Trump suggesting the United States should take over the Gaza Strip and clear out its inhabitants, sparking global outrage.
Or Levy, Ohad Ben Ami and Eli Sharabi, who were all seized by militants during Hamas鈥檚 October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war, 鈥榗rossed the border into Israeli territory鈥� on Saturday, the Israeli military said.
With their return, 73 out of 251 hostages taken during the attack now remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Jubilant crowds in Israel鈥檚 commercial hub Tel Aviv cheered as they watched live footage of the three hostages, flanked by masked gunmen, brought on stage in Deir el-Balah before being handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
But the joy at their release was quickly overtaken by concern for their condition, with all three appearing thin and pale.
Sharabi鈥檚 cousin Yochi Sardinayof said 鈥榟e doesn鈥檛 look well鈥�.
鈥業鈥檓 sure he will now receive the right treatment and he will get stronger... He has an amazing family, and we will all be there for him.鈥�
The choreographed handover included forced statements from the three on stage, in which they stated support for finalising the next phases of the Israel-Hamas truce.
The 鈥榙isturbing images鈥� from Gaza show that 鈥榳e must get them all out鈥�, said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group.
The office of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose dejected-looking portrait appeared on a banner at the Deir el-Balah handover site, said the images out of Gaza were 鈥榮hocking鈥�.
Israel鈥檚 president Isaac Herzog denounced the treatment of the hostages, who were paraded on stage 鈥榓fter 491 days of hell, starved, emaciated and pained鈥� and 鈥渆xploited in a cynical and cruel spectacle鈥�.
Sharabi, 52, and Ben Ami, a 56-year-old dual German citizen, were both abducted from their homes in kibbutz Beeri when militants stormed the small community near the Gaza border.
Sharabi lost his wife and two daughters in the attack.
Levy was abducted from the Nova music festival, where gunmen murdered his wife.
In the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian authority, relatives and supporters gathered to welcome inmates released by Israel, embracing them and cheering as they stepped off the bus that brought them from nearby Ofer prison.
Israel鈥檚 prison service said that 鈥�183 terrorists... were released鈥� to the West Bank, annexed east Jerusalem and Gaza.
The Palestinian Prisoners鈥� Club advocacy group and the Palestinian Red Crescent said that seven of them had been admitted to hospital in the West Bank.
鈥楢ll the prisoners who were released today [Saturday] are in need of medical care... as a result of the brutality they were subjected鈥� to in jail, said the advocacy group, which has long decried abuses of Palestinians in Israeli custody.
Hamas in a statement accused Israel of 鈥榮ystematic assaults and mistreatment of our prisoners鈥�, calling it 鈥榩art of the policy of... the slow killing of prisoners鈥�.
Gaza militants have so far freed 21 hostages in exchange for hundreds of mostly Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails.
Five Thai hostages freed last week from Gaza were discharged on Saturday from a hospital in central Israel, where they had been treated since their release, and were headed back to their home country.
The ceasefire, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States, aims to secure the release of 12 more hostages during its first 42-day phase.
Negotiations on the second stage of the ceasefire were set to begin on Monday, but there have been no details on the status of the talks.
The Hostage and Missing Families Forum urged the Israeli government on Friday to stick with the truce, even as Trump鈥檚 comments raised questions about the future of the deal.
鈥楢n entire nation demands to see the hostages return home,鈥� the Israeli campaign group said in a statement.
鈥楴ow is the time to ensure the agreement is completed鈥攗ntil the very last one,鈥� it added.
Netanyahu鈥檚 office said that after Saturday鈥檚 swap, an Israeli delegation would head to Doha for further talks.
Hama鈥檚 October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Israel鈥檚 retaliation has killed at least 48,181 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory鈥檚 health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
