Released hostages Sagui Dekel-Chen, Sasha Troufanov and Iair Horn crossed back into Israel on Saturday after being paraded on a stage in southern Gaza in a propaganda-filled release ceremony by the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror groups after 498 days in captivity.
Troufanov, who had been held by Islamic Jihad, was the first to emerge from a vehicle and be led onto the stage. Dekel-Chen and Horn, who had been held by Hamas, were then brought up. Both men wore matching black and cream sweatsuits, a shift from the previous hostage release where the men were dressed as prisoners or soldiers.
Dekel-Chen and Horn, both appearing thin, were occasionally supported by the Hamas gunmen who took them up on stage and Horn appeared to be limping and clutched a railing for support.
They appeared to be in a better physical condition than the three severely emaciated hostages who were released last week in images that shocked Israel and sparked an outpouring of anger.
On stage all three men were made to give short speeches in Hebrew, urging the Israeli government to continue with the next phase of the hostage-ceasefire deal and to bring all the hostages home.
They were then handed over to members of the Red Cross, who transported them to IDF soldiers at a second location within the Gaza Strip.
Their masked captors handed the three commemorative “gifts” during their release ceremony, something the terror group has done in all previous releases. The three hostages were also seen holding a “release certificate” as well as an embroidery showing a map of the claimed borders of Palestine.
Horn was also handed an hourglass featuring images of hostage Matan Zangauker and his mother, Einav, with text reading: “Time is running out.” Einav Zangauker has been one of the most prominent activists pushing for the government to secure an agreement that would see the release of all the remaining hostages. Matan Zangauker is not slated to be freed in the first phase of the deal.
The stage featured Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad flags, as well as propaganda posters, including a picture of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar looking at the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem with the caption in English, Hebrew and Arabic, saying “No migration except to Jerusalem,” a dig at US President Donald Trump’s call to resettle Gazans.
Another poster has aerial images of the communities and bases that Hamas invaded on October 7, 2023, with the caption, “We crossed over swiftly.”
Hamas gunmen could also be seen wearing IDF uniforms and brandishing Israeli weapons stolen on October 7.
Hundreds of Palestinians had gathered to watch the ceremony, with Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Palestinian flags fluttering around the stage and festive music blaring from loudspeakers. The stage area was cordoned off by heavily armed, masked gunmen.
But there was no repeat of the recent chaotic handover of Inbal Yehoud and Gadi Mozes, where they were marched through a seething mob that took place at the same site, near the destroyed home of Sinwar.
Hamas gunmen could be seen patrolling on the roof of a destroyed building overlooking the handover site. The area was completely surrounded by flattened buildings and rubble, with the area seeing some of the heaviest fighting during the war.
Ahead of the release, Islamic Jihad released two propaganda videos of Troufanov. One video showed Islamic Jihad terror operatives handing Troufanov a document with the “decision to release him.” Troufanov was seen being held in a tunnel in the video.
Islamic Jihad has issued multiple videos of Troufanov during his captivity, including one on Friday night showing him walking on Gaza’s coast.
Troufanov’s family had requested that media outlets not publish the video or stills from the latest videos.
Relatives of the three cheered with relief and happiness when they saw images of them being released. Hundreds had also gathered in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square to watch the release.
Israel is expected to release 369 Palestinian security prisoners, including 36 serving life sentences for murdering dozens, in exchange for the three hostages.
The release of the three hostages who were all kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, massacre came after a week of uncertainty and doubt.
Hamas notified Israel of the identities of the three hostages set to be released via Egyptian and Qatari mediators, having backed down on Thursday from a threat to delay the next release of captives. Hamas had accused Israel earlier in the week of failing to meet its aid obligations under the truce. Israel had rejected the charge and threatened to resume the war.
Israel had in recent days appeared to endorse US President Donald Trump’s demand that all hostages be freed promptly, rather than just the three set for the next release, but was vague on the matter.
Jerusalem is reportedly still pushing for further live hostages to be released in the upcoming days, but a senior Arab official told The Times of Israel on Thursday that it was unlikely the terror group would deviate from the original timeframe of the agreement.
Three hostages released by Hamas last weekend — Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami — came back gaunt, malnourished and suffering from serious health issues.
Russian-Israeli citizen Troufanov, 29, was taken hostage along with three members of his family — grandmother Irena Tati, mother Yelena (Lena) and his girlfriend Sapir Cohen — from their home in the Gaza border community. His father, Vitaly Troufanov, was killed during the onslaught.
Hamas released the three women in November 2023 as part of a week-long truce.
In a statement after his release, the family said they were “overwhelmed with emotion and gratitude for Sasha’s return home after 498 long and tormenting days in captivity.”
“On October 7, Sasha was brutally kidnapped from his home and shot in both legs. Seeing him today strengthens us and gives us great hope for the long rehabilitation process ahead of him,” the statement said.
However, they also noted that they don’t know if he knows that his father was killed. “This knowledge – or lack thereof – will completely transform his homecoming from a day of great joy to one of deep mourning for his beloved father.”
Yelena Troufanov arrived on Friday at the site where she will be reunited with her son. She became observant over the past year and came to the location near the Gaza border a day early to avoid traveling on the Sabbath.
“I ask you all to light Shabbat candles with joy,” she said in footage posted to social media. “Make a wish that all our hostages come home soon and that there will be peace, quiet and calm in the land of Israel for the nation of Israel.”
According to a biography released by his family, Sasha Troufanov works as an engineer in Amazon’s cloud division. His family immigrated to Israel from the Soviet Union 25 years ago.
Moscow has pushed for Troufanov’s release multiple times since he was abducted, including since the January ceasefire was announced.
Sapir Cohen recounted seeing armed terrorists seize a bleeding Sasha on October 7, whose last words to her were “No, no.” In May 2024, Palestinian Islamic Jihad released a video of Sasha, followed by another in November 2024, after his second birthday in captivity.
US-Israeli citizen Dekel-Chen, 36, saw Hamas-led terrorists entering Nir Oz and was among the first to raise the alarm. He was last heard from at 9:30 a.m. on October 7, 2023, according to his father, Connecticut-born Jonathan Dekel-Chen, a Hebrew University professor who also lives at Nir Oz.
Sagui was working in the kibbutz’s machine shop when the attack began, his family said. After ensuring his wife and children were safely in their home’s secure room, he confronted the terrorists and was taken captive.
Sagui’s mother, Neomit, was taken captive along with her neighbors in an electric cart that was headed toward Gaza when an IDF helicopter shot at the terrorists and driver. Neomit, injured, made her way back toward the kibbutz and was eventually rescued and evacuated.
His then-pregnant wife Avital and two young daughters also survived the massacre in Nir Oz. His third daughter, Shachar, born two months later, celebrated her first birthday in December without her father.
According to Channel 12, Sagui Dekel-Chen was “all smiles” as Israeli officials notified him that he has a one-year-old daughter.
Asked about his medical condition, the network said Dekel-Chen replied: “I’m great, I’m great, I have a daughter.”
“Our Sagui is home. A friend, son, partner and most importantly, a father has returned. 498 days, almost 500 days, he was so far away and now he’s finally on Israeli soil, with us,” his family said in a statement after the release.
“In the coming hours, he will begin his rehabilitation process, he will meet his daughters Gali and Bar, and for the first time meet his little daughter, Shahar, who was born while he was in captivity. Our hearts ache for everything he missed, but now he’s here, unlike many others.”
According to a biography provided by his family, Sagui is a social and business entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of the Bikurim Youth Village and an avid tennis player. Friends and family know him as creative, honest and humble.
Argentinian-Israel citizen Horn, 46, was also abducted from his home on October 7, as Hamas terrorists swarmed through the kibbutz, killing or kidnapping a quarter of the southern community’s residents.
His younger brother, Eitan Horn, 38, who was visiting from Kfar Saba for the holiday weekend, was also kidnapped and is still held in Gaza. He is not on the list of “humanitarian” cases — women, children, elderly individuals and the infirm — slated for release in the first stage of the ceasefire.
“Now, we can breathe a little. Our Iair is home after surviving hell in Gaza.
Now, we need to bring Eitan back so our family can truly breathe,” the family said in a statement after the release.
According to a biography provided by his family, Iair is known for organizing Purim parties and managing the kibbutz pub and is an avid fan of the Hapoel Beersheba football club. Friends and family describe him as someone who loves life and is deeply connected to his family and kibbutz community.
Following the announcement of the three civilian hostages set to be freed, the Hamas prisoners’ media office said Israel would release 369 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday as part of the exchange, including 36 serving life sentences.
The remaining 333 prisoners slated were detained in Gaza after October 7, over the course of the war.
Following Saturday’s release, under the terms of the ceasefire that went into effect last month, 14 hostages are still slated to be released under the deal’s first stage, six of whom are believed to still be alive.
Recent weeks have seen the terror group release 16 Israelis and five Thai hostages under the arrangement, which also requires Israel to free some 2,000 Palestinian security prisoners, including hundreds of terrorists serving life sentences and lengthy terms for attacks.
But serious doubts remain over subsequent stages of the deal, which have yet to be negotiated.
Seventy-three of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 35 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Before the current ceasefire that came into effect in January, the terror group freed 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, and four hostages were released before that.
Eight hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 40 hostages have also been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the Israeli military as they tried to escape their captors.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the body of an IDF soldier who was killed in 2014. The body of another IDF soldier, also killed in 2014, was recovered from Gaza in January.