"I cried out of happiness," says mother of released Thai hostage
From CNN’s Kocha Olarn in Bangkok and Manveena Suri
The mother of a Thai hostage released on Friday told CNN she “cried out of happiness” upon learning the news.
“I broke into tears when I spotted her in two video clips. I recognized her hair and the way she normally walks. I thought it was definitely her when I saw a lady walking to a bus in a red dress together with her hairstyle,” Boonyarin Srichan, the mother of Nutthawaree Munkan, told CNN over the phone on Saturday.
Srichan lives in Khon Kaen province, one of the country’s poorest, with her 8-year-old granddaughter.
She said she couldn’t contain her happiness and ran around her home, jumping up and down together with her granddaughter.
“I cried out of my happiness,” she said.
Srichan hasn’t yet spoken to her daughter but plans to travel to Bangkok to receive her.
Earlier on Saturday, the Thai government confirmed her release. She was seen in a photograph alongside the nine other Thai hostages released.
25 min ago
20 Thai nationals still in Hamas captivity, says Thailand's Foreign Ministry
From CNN’s Kocha Olarn in Bangkok and Manveena Suri
An estimated 20 Thai nationals are still being held by Hamas as hostages in Gaza, the Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Saturday.
It added that of the 10 hostages released on Friday, four had not been previously confirmed as missing by Israeli authorities.
The families of the released hostages have been notified, and Thai Embassy officials are in the process of making “necessary arrangements for their travel back to Thailand," said the ministry.
It also thanked the governments of Qatar, Israel, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia and the International Committee of the Red Cross, expressing its “deepest appreciation to all of the parties from whom the Thai authorities had sought assistance and support.”
“We sincerely hope that the remaining hostages will be treated humanely and released safely as soon as possible,” it added.
10 min ago
Filipino hostage doing "better than expected" after release
From CNN’s Lucas Lilieholm, Teele Rebane and Manveena Suri in Hong Kong
Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos confirmed the release of a Philippine national, Gelienor "Jimmy" Pacheco, on Friday.
“I salute the work of the Philippine Foreign Service in securing his release, and once again thank the State of Qatar for their invaluable assistance in making Jimmy’s release possible,” Marcos said.
He had been working as a caregiver in Israel when he was taken hostage on October 7, according to Avishay Ben Zvi, the son of the man Pacheco had been caring for.
Zvi's father, Amitai, was killed in the Hamas attack on his kibbutz. Speaking to CNN, Zvi said Pacheco was doing "better than expected."
“He was talking to his wife tonight and so better than expected, I would say,” said Zvi, referring to photos of Pacheco FaceTiming with his wife in the Philippines.
“They're going to do some medical tests and emotional tests and treatment, but yes, most likely he will go to meet his family,” Zvi said.
The whereabouts of one other Philippine citizen held hostage, Noralyn Babadilla, remain unknown.
9 min ago
"There wasn't a dry eye in the room" during hostage family reunions, Israeli health official says
From CNN’s Joseph Ataman and Oren Liebermann in Tel Aviv
“There wasn’t a dry eye in the room” when five hostages were reunited with their families, Israel’s chief nurse Dr. Shoshy Goldberg said at a news conference at Wolfson Medical Center near Tel Aviv.
The five elderly women were received in a specially prepared complex for them and their families. The reunions as a “very emotional and exciting event,” Goldberg said Friday.
Videos provided by the hospital showed people cheering as ambulances carrying three of the women transported them from a helicopter.
“I promise to the returning women and their families: You are finally home, in a safe place," Wolfson Medical Center Director General Dr. Anat Engel said.
38 min ago
Released Palestinian prisoners celebrated as they return to West Bank
From CNN's Celine Alkhaldi, Nada Bashir and Shirin Zia Faqiri
Palestinians released from Israeli prisons were met with celebrations on Friday evening as they returned to their hometowns and villages in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
In videos obtained by CNN, the released prisoners can be seen paraded through the streets, carried on people’s shoulders as crowds wave the Palestinian flag, as well as that of Hamas.
Twenty-two women were among those released, as well as two girls. Fifteen teenage boys up to the age of 18 were also released — the youngest age 14.
What they were imprisoned for: There are few more sensitive issues for Palestinians in the occupied territories than the issue of prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Some are serving sentences for attacks on Israelis, while many others are being held in administrative detention, a widely criticized practice that sees people held without knowing the charges against them, and without any legal process.
Aseel El-Titi, a 23-year-old prisoner released on Friday, told CNN she had only found out that morning she was being released. But, she said, her joy was tempered by the knowledge of what was happening in Gaza.
"Our joy is incomplete. There are martyrs because of the situation in Gaza. The number of martyrs in Gaza has become greater than the number of prisoners [in Israeli jails],” El-Titi said.
“Despite this, the Palestinian people are steadfast, and Hamas is trying to release all the prisoners and end the occupation," she said.
Wael Ahmad, a bystander at the Beitunia crossing in the occupied West Bank, where the prisoners were driven after their release, told CNN he also found it hard to celebrate when so many had been killed in Gaza.
"This celebration is wrong. I am torn to pieces,” Ahmad said.
More releases to come: The agreement struck between Israel and Hamas will see three more days of prisoner releases.
For Hamas, securing the freedom of an expected 150 incarcerated Palestinians represents an opportunity to burnish its credentials in the West Bank as the flagbearer of Palestinian resistance.
14 min ago
Israel says it received a list of hostages to be released on Saturday
From Tamar Michaelis in Tel Aviv
The Mossad and the Israel Defense Forces have received the second list of Israeli hostages due to be released on Saturday as part of the framework agreed with Hamas, the office of Israel's prime minister wrote in a statement on Friday.
Security officials are reviewing the list of names, the statement read. An Israeli source told CNN there are children on the list of hostages expected to be released on Saturday.
Israel's Hostage Coordinator Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch has given the information to the families of the hostages, the statement added.
The list will not be released to the public until the hostages are safely in Israeli hands.
CNN's Kaitlan Collins contributed to this report.
36 min ago
11 released foreign nationals transferred to Israeli medical center, Foreign Ministry says
From Tamar Michaelis in Tel Aviv
Eleven foreign nationals — 10 men and one woman — freed by Hamas in Gaza are spending the night at Shamir-Assaf HaRofeh Medical Center, according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
The medical center is located in the Israeli town of Beer Yaakov, southeast of Tel Aviv,
The 10 Thai citizens and one Philippine citizen will remain at the hospital until medical examinations are complete, the ministry said in a statement.
“An initial examination suggests [the freed hostages] seem well,” Dr. Osnat Levtzion Korach, the medical center’s director general said in a video statement. “They are very glad to be somewhere safe and are thankful for the treatment and attention," he added.
“We’re very glad and proud to take a part in this effort,” the doctor said.
35 min ago
Implementing hostage agreement in days ahead will be complicated, Israel military spokesperson says
From Tamar Michaelis and CNN's Lauren Kent
The Israeli military is warning that the implementation of the hostage release agreement will be complicated and "nothing is over until it’s over."
"The days ahead of us will be complicated, nothing is over until it’s over. We should be prepared," Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Friday.
He said the freeing of 24 hostages from Gaza, including 13 Israeli citizens, is "a great relief," but "our hearts are with the hostages that are still being held in Gaza."
The agreement, accompanied by a four-day truce between Hamas and Israel that began on Friday morning, represents the first major diplomatic breakthrough in the conflict.
"In the Gaza Strip in the morning hours, IDF troops deployed along the lines of the operational pause in Gaza. The commanders were briefed and prepared the forces as to how to act during the time of the pause," Hagari added. "During the pause days, the IDF will complete the preparations for the next phases of the war."
Asked about the possibility that senior Hamas officials might attempt to flee Gaza during the truce, Hagari said, "We’re monitoring everything necessary, and are monitoring senior Hamas officials, in Gaza and anywhere in the world."
32 min ago
Hostages held in Gaza and Palestinians jailed in Israel were released Friday. Here's what you should know
From CNN staff
Twenty-four people held hostage for nearly seven weeks in the Gaza Strip were released Friday as part of a truce brokered between Israel and Hamas, according to officials.
The group includes 10 Thai citizens, 13 Israelis and one Philippine citizen, according to Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari. They are now in Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said Friday.
In addition, 39 Palestinian women and teenagers were freed from Israeli jails and were on their way to the West Bank.
The pause and releases followed weeks of tense negotiations – and took several agonizing days to come into effect. The agreement represents the first major diplomatic breakthrough in the conflict.
Here's what else you know about Friday's developments:
Kidnapped from kibbutz: The civilians released included 13 Israeli women and children who had been captured by Hamas during its brutal cross-border raids on October 7 and held for 48 days amid worsening humanitarian conditions. All but one were abducted from the Nir Oz kibbutz, according to spokespeople for the kibbutz and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. They included 5-year-old Emilia Aloni and Adina Moshe, who was seen being driven away on a motorbike after being abducted.
Reaction to releases: Hailing the release, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he remains committed to securing the release of all those still held in Gaza.Israel’s Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs released detailed instructions outlining how to care for released children. The release sparked a range of emotions in Tel Aviv on Friday and raised hopes for the families of those still held in the enclave.
Palestinian prisoner release: Qatar’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that Palestinian prisoners are on their way to the West Bank. The 39 were released from three prisons — Damon, Megiddo and Ofer — according to the prison service. A CNN team outside Ofer prison witnessed clashes between the Israeli military and some Palestinians ahead of the release. Around 8,300 Palestinian prisoners are currently held in Israeli jails, said Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Prisoners’ Affairs.
Developments on the ground: The Israeli military told people in southern Gaza not to move north, with its forces restricting travel to only one road. Also, a CNN team in the southern Israel city of Sderot said it heard "loud booms" that sounded like Israeli artillery fire landing in Gaza, up to 15 minutes after the expected start time of the truce between Israel and Hamas.
Humanitarian aid: The United Nations said 137 trucks with humanitarian goods were offloaded in Gaza on the first day of the pause, marking the largest aid convoy since October 7. Some 130,000 liters of diesel fuel and four trucks of gas will enter daily starting Friday, according to an Egyptian official.
Returning Palestinians: Displaced Palestinians attempting to return to homes in northern Gaza were allegedly blocked by Israeli forces, a journalist told CNN. But eventually, at least 67 Palestinians who had been stuck in Egypt since fighting began on October 7 crossed back Friday, hours after the truce went into effect.
An initial group of 24 hostages has been released as a truce between Israel and Hamas — the first in weeks of fighting — appears to be holding.
The released hostages include 13 Israelis, 10 Thai citizens and 1 Philippine citizen, according to Qatar's Foreign Ministry. The hostages are now in Israel, where they have undergone an initial medical assessment, the Israel Defense Forces said.
The Israel Prison Service said 39 Palestinian women and children were released from three prisons as part of the agreement.
The mother of a Thai hostage released on Friday told CNN she “cried out of happiness” upon learning the news.
“I broke into tears when I spotted her in two video clips. I recognized her hair and the way she normally walks. I thought it was definitely her when I saw a lady walking to a bus in a red dress together with her hairstyle,” Boonyarin Srichan, the mother of Nutthawaree Munkan, told CNN over the phone on Saturday.
Srichan lives in Khon Kaen province, one of the country’s poorest, with her 8-year-old granddaughter.
She said she couldn’t contain her happiness and ran around her home, jumping up and down together with her granddaughter.
“I cried out of my happiness,” she said.
Srichan hasn’t yet spoken to her daughter but plans to travel to Bangkok to receive her.
Earlier on Saturday, the Thai government confirmed her release. She was seen in a photograph alongside the nine other Thai hostages released.
An estimated 20 Thai nationals are still being held by Hamas as hostages in Gaza, the Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Saturday.
It added that of the 10 hostages released on Friday, four had not been previously confirmed as missing by Israeli authorities.
The families of the released hostages have been notified, and Thai Embassy officials are in the process of making “necessary arrangements for their travel back to Thailand," said the ministry.
It also thanked the governments of Qatar, Israel, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia and the International Committee of the Red Cross, expressing its “deepest appreciation to all of the parties from whom the Thai authorities had sought assistance and support.”
“We sincerely hope that the remaining hostages will be treated humanely and released safely as soon as possible,” it added.
Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos confirmed the release of a Philippine national, Gelienor "Jimmy" Pacheco, on Friday.
“I salute the work of the Philippine Foreign Service in securing his release, and once again thank the State of Qatar for their invaluable assistance in making Jimmy’s release possible,” Marcos said.
He had been working as a caregiver in Israel when he was taken hostage on October 7, according to Avishay Ben Zvi, the son of the man Pacheco had been caring for.
Zvi's father, Amitai, was killed in the Hamas attack on his kibbutz. Speaking to CNN, Zvi said Pacheco was doing "better than expected."
“He was talking to his wife tonight and so better than expected, I would say,” said Zvi, referring to photos of Pacheco FaceTiming with his wife in the Philippines.
“They're going to do some medical tests and emotional tests and treatment, but yes, most likely he will go to meet his family,” Zvi said.
The whereabouts of one other Philippine citizen held hostage, Noralyn Babadilla, remain unknown.
“There wasn’t a dry eye in the room” when five hostages were reunited with their families, Israel’s chief nurse Dr. Shoshy Goldberg said at a news conference at Wolfson Medical Center near Tel Aviv.
The five elderly women were received in a specially prepared complex for them and their families. The reunions as a “very emotional and exciting event,” Goldberg said Friday.
Videos provided by the hospital showed people cheering as ambulances carrying three of the women transported them from a helicopter.
“I promise to the returning women and their families: You are finally home, in a safe place," Wolfson Medical Center Director General Dr. Anat Engel said.
Palestinians released from Israeli prisons were met with celebrations on Friday evening as they returned to their hometowns and villages in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
In videos obtained by CNN, the released prisoners can be seen paraded through the streets, carried on people’s shoulders as crowds wave the Palestinian flag, as well as that of Hamas.
Twenty-two women were among those released, as well as two girls. Fifteen teenage boys up to the age of 18 were also released — the youngest age 14.
What they were imprisoned for: There are few more sensitive issues for Palestinians in the occupied territories than the issue of prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Some are serving sentences for attacks on Israelis, while many others are being held in administrative detention, a widely criticized practice that sees people held without knowing the charges against them, and without any legal process.
Aseel El-Titi, a 23-year-old prisoner released on Friday, told CNN she had only found out that morning she was being released. But, she said, her joy was tempered by the knowledge of what was happening in Gaza.
"Our joy is incomplete. There are martyrs because of the situation in Gaza. The number of martyrs in Gaza has become greater than the number of prisoners [in Israeli jails],” El-Titi said.
“Despite this, the Palestinian people are steadfast, and Hamas is trying to release all the prisoners and end the occupation," she said.
Wael Ahmad, a bystander at the Beitunia crossing in the occupied West Bank, where the prisoners were driven after their release, told CNN he also found it hard to celebrate when so many had been killed in Gaza.
"This celebration is wrong. I am torn to pieces,” Ahmad said.
More releases to come: The agreement struck between Israel and Hamas will see three more days of prisoner releases.
For Hamas, securing the freedom of an expected 150 incarcerated Palestinians represents an opportunity to burnish its credentials in the West Bank as the flagbearer of Palestinian resistance.
The Mossad and the Israel Defense Forces have received the second list of Israeli hostages due to be released on Saturday as part of the framework agreed with Hamas, the office of Israel's prime minister wrote in a statement on Friday.
Security officials are reviewing the list of names, the statement read. An Israeli source told CNN there are children on the list of hostages expected to be released on Saturday.
Israel's Hostage Coordinator Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch has given the information to the families of the hostages, the statement added.
The list will not be released to the public until the hostages are safely in Israeli hands.
CNN's Kaitlan Collins contributed to this report.
Eleven foreign nationals — 10 men and one woman — freed by Hamas in Gaza are spending the night at Shamir-Assaf HaRofeh Medical Center, according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
The medical center is located in the Israeli town of Beer Yaakov, southeast of Tel Aviv,
The 10 Thai citizens and one Philippine citizen will remain at the hospital until medical examinations are complete, the ministry said in a statement.
“An initial examination suggests [the freed hostages] seem well,” Dr. Osnat Levtzion Korach, the medical center’s director general said in a video statement. “They are very glad to be somewhere safe and are thankful for the treatment and attention," he added.
“We’re very glad and proud to take a part in this effort,” the doctor said.
The Israeli military is warning that the implementation of the hostage release agreement will be complicated and "nothing is over until it’s over."
"The days ahead of us will be complicated, nothing is over until it’s over. We should be prepared," Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Friday.
He said the freeing of 24 hostages from Gaza, including 13 Israeli citizens, is "a great relief," but "our hearts are with the hostages that are still being held in Gaza."
The agreement, accompanied by a four-day truce between Hamas and Israel that began on Friday morning, represents the first major diplomatic breakthrough in the conflict.
"In the Gaza Strip in the morning hours, IDF troops deployed along the lines of the operational pause in Gaza. The commanders were briefed and prepared the forces as to how to act during the time of the pause," Hagari added. "During the pause days, the IDF will complete the preparations for the next phases of the war."
Asked about the possibility that senior Hamas officials might attempt to flee Gaza during the truce, Hagari said, "We’re monitoring everything necessary, and are monitoring senior Hamas officials, in Gaza and anywhere in the world."
Twenty-four people held hostage for nearly seven weeks in the Gaza Strip were released Friday as part of a truce brokered between Israel and Hamas, according to officials.
The group includes 10 Thai citizens, 13 Israelis and one Philippine citizen, according to Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari. They are now in Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said Friday.
In addition, 39 Palestinian women and teenagers were freed from Israeli jails and were on their way to the West Bank.
The pause and releases followed weeks of tense negotiations – and took several agonizing days to come into effect. The agreement represents the first major diplomatic breakthrough in the conflict.
Here's what else you know about Friday's developments:
Kidnapped from kibbutz: The civilians released included 13 Israeli women and children who had been captured by Hamas during its brutal cross-border raids on October 7 and held for 48 days amid worsening humanitarian conditions. All but one were abducted from the Nir Oz kibbutz, according to spokespeople for the kibbutz and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. They included 5-year-old Emilia Aloni and Adina Moshe, who was seen being driven away on a motorbike after being abducted.
Reaction to releases: Hailing the release, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he remains committed to securing the release of all those still held in Gaza.Israel’s Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs released detailed instructions outlining how to care for released children. The release sparked a range of emotions in Tel Aviv on Friday and raised hopes for the families of those still held in the enclave.
Palestinian prisoner release: Qatar’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that Palestinian prisoners are on their way to the West Bank. The 39 were released from three prisons — Damon, Megiddo and Ofer — according to the prison service. A CNN team outside Ofer prison witnessed clashes between the Israeli military and some Palestinians ahead of the release. Around 8,300 Palestinian prisoners are currently held in Israeli jails, said Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Prisoners’ Affairs.
Developments on the ground: The Israeli military told people in southern Gaza not to move north, with its forces restricting travel to only one road. Also, a CNN team in the southern Israel city of Sderot said it heard "loud booms" that sounded like Israeli artillery fire landing in Gaza, up to 15 minutes after the expected start time of the truce between Israel and Hamas.
Humanitarian aid: The United Nations said 137 trucks with humanitarian goods were offloaded in Gaza on the first day of the pause, marking the largest aid convoy since October 7. Some 130,000 liters of diesel fuel and four trucks of gas will enter daily starting Friday, according to an Egyptian official.
Returning Palestinians: Displaced Palestinians attempting to return to homes in northern Gaza were allegedly blocked by Israeli forces, a journalist told CNN. But eventually, at least 67 Palestinians who had been stuck in Egypt since fighting began on October 7 crossed back Friday, hours after the truce went into effect.
