The Israeli government has laid out its plans for how today’s hostage release is expected to unfold.
This is not the first exchange of hostages and prisoners. In previous exchanges, Hamas performed creepy rituals before handing over the people it had kidnapped.
But this time, no Hamas propaganda will be on display, nor will there be any “disgusting displays” by the Palestinian militant group, Shosh Bedrossian, a spokesman for the Israeli prime minister’s office, said on Sunday.
Instead, 20 living hostages held in Gaza will be released to the Red Cross and “transported in six to eight vehicles,” Bedrossian said.
The Israeli government said the hostages will be treated at three different hospitals after being reunited with their families.
A memorial ceremony will be held for the dead and returned hostages, and international forces will help recover bodies held by Hamas that were not returned within the 72-hour deadline for their release.
After the hostages are safely transferred to Israeli territory, the agreed Palestinian prisoners and detainees will be released by Israel.
Israel must release 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences, along with 1,700 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip held since October 7, 2023.
A spokesperson for Israel’s prison authorities said prisoners serving life sentences scheduled for release were transferred on Saturday to concentration camps in Ofer and Keziot prisons in southern Israel.
Israel says 142 of those prisoners will be deported. The rest will return to the occupied West Bank or east Jerusalem.
