First Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners released as ceasefire between Israel and Hamas goes into effect

By Chantal Da Silva

=> Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/ceasefire-israel-hamas-gaza-hostage-release-palestinian-rcna188248 | Return to NBC feed

The first Americans to be released will be [1 link] Keith Siegel, 65, on Day 14 of the ceasefire, and then [2 link] Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36, who is injured, according to a senior administration official and a diplomatic official.

The other five Americans, both alive and dead, will not be released until the second phase of the ceasefire deal, the officials said. They are expected to include a dual national, Edan Alexander, 20, whose condition is unknown.

A total of 94 people seized and taken into Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, are still believed to be in Hamas’ captivity, along with four people who have been held by Hamas since 2014. At least 34 of those taken hostage during the Hamas-led attacks are understood to be dead, while two of the abductees taken captive in 2014 are also dead.

The ceasefire is expected to pause more than a year of unrelenting Israeli bombings, and also open the floodgates to desperately needed aid, with up to 600 trucks a day to enter the enclave, according to the World Health Organization. A shortage of food, medicine and fuel, plus deadly violence, has created a spiraling humanitarian crisis marked by widespread hunger and sickness.

If all the phases of the ceasefire go ahead as planned, it will bring relief — and possible closure — to families of the hostages trapped in the enclave under terrifying and dangerous conditions, as well as to Palestinian families whose loved ones have been detained by the Israeli military.

Negotiations over a second stage are expected to get underway by the 16th day of the first phase. Biden said Wednesday that this round would aim to bring about a “permanent end to the war,” as both the outgoing administration and President-elect Donald Trump have pressed for a resolution to the conflict ahead of Monday's presidential inauguration.

[3 link] [4 image] [5 link] Chantal Da Silva [6 link]

Chantal Da Silva reports on world news for NBC News Digital and is based in London.

Omer Bekin

,

Erik Ortiz

,

Andrea Mitchell

and

Yarden Segev

contributed

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