The first three hostages released by Hamas under the ceasefire agreement returned to Israel on Sunday after being held for 470 days, setting off a celebration among their countrymen and families. After arriving in Israel, Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher were accompanied by their mothers on a helicopter flight to a hospital for checkups, the Washington Post reports. There, they were reunited with other family members. The medical evaluations will continue for several days, per CNN. The next phase of the agreement calls for the release of Palestinian prisoners and other detainees.
There were celebrations throughout Gaza and Israel. But people on both sides said their reactions are complicated, per the New York Times, involving uncertainty about rebuilding and future government among Gazans and concern about the health of hostages and unease about Palestinians convicted of attacks going free among Israelis. Palestinians consider the detainees to be political prisoners and freedom fighters. "There is relief," said Dov Weissglas, a former politician in Israel, "wrapped in caution, fears and concern."
One Israeli columnist said joy and sadness are "inseparably intertwined," writing that Sunday was a day not of celebration but of reckoning. Next, Ben Caspit wrote, Israel will have to confront its failure on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas fighters attacked. "Let us think about those who were killed and murdered and burned and raped and kidnapped," he said. Israeli authorities released video footage on Sunday of the three women and their families reuniting that showed fierce hugs and sobbing, per the AP. "You're here!" one relative cried out. "I can really touch you!" (More Israel-Hamas war stories.)
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