ISLAMABAD: A crowd cheered as masked militants escorted two pale and dazed Israeli captives onto a rainy stage for the seventh hostage-prisoner exchange under the Gaza ceasefire on Saturday.
Hamas fighters, standing in formation in the southern Gazan city of Rafah, handed over the captives to the Red Cross. One of the freed men, Avera Mengistu, appeared to struggle while walking. Before being taken away in Red Cross vehicles, both Mengistu and Tal Shoham received “liberation certificates” in Hebrew, an AFP journalist reported.
A Hamas source told AFP that four more hostages would be released from the Nuseirat refugee camp later in the morning.
Orchestrated Ceremony
In both Rafah and Nuseirat, Hamas prepared stages for what has become a well-rehearsed spectacle, showcasing hostages before their release. Large posters and banners promoted the group’s cause and honored fallen fighters.
In Rafah, armed members of Hamas’ military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, stood guard around the handover site. Some brandished Kalashnikov rifles and handheld rocket launchers, while the group’s green flags were displayed on war-damaged buildings.
“We stand with the resistance, with the valiant Brigades, with the fighters,” said Rafah resident Fidaa Awda.
Displays of Strength and Slogans
On stage, a table covered in camouflage cloth displayed U.S.-made assault rifles allegedly taken from Israeli soldiers. A prominent slogan behind the table read, “We are the flood. We are the extreme strength,” referencing Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, Hamas’ name for the October 7 attack that triggered the war.
Other banners honored Hamas military leaders, including Muhammad Deif, who was killed by an Israeli airstrike in 2024. A poster below the stage carried a verse from a 1926 anti-colonial poem, previously recited by slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
Hundreds of Gazans gathered to witness the event on a foggy, rainy morning. Some climbed onto the rubble of bombed buildings, while others stood in partially destroyed structures. One man held a young boy dressed in military fatigues and a Hamas headband as militants paraded on pickup trucks.
Hamas Statement
In a statement, Hamas praised the hostage exchange and issued a stark message to Israel:
“Either they receive their prisoners in coffins, as happened on Thursday due to Netanyahu’s arrogance, or they embrace their prisoners alive in commitment to the resistance’s conditions.”
As of now, 65 hostages taken during the October 7 attack remain in Gaza, including 35 who the Israeli military says are dead.
