Meanwhile, buses carrying Palestinian prisoners have begun moving out of Ofer Prison in the West Bank, Reuters reported.
Number of Israeli Hostages Released by Hamas Today; Donald Trump in Israel Latest News: The first seven Israeli hostages have been handed over in Gaza and were accompanied by the Israel Defense Force Manpower Directorate and IDF medical teams about an hour ago.
The hostages will undergo an initial medical evaluation and will reunite with their families at the initial reception point in southern Israel, the IDF said in a statement.
The seven hostages were transported to the IDF by the Red Cross from Hamas earlier today. After that, the Red Cross was on its way to a meeting point in southern Gaza, where a second set of hostages would be handed over to the Red Cross, and the second set of hostages had just been transferred to the Red Cross, Reuters reported, citing officials.
The official it cited, who is involved in the operation, stated that 13 remaining living hostages had been transferred from Hamas' armed wing to the Red Cross in Gaza and the IDF has confirmed the same.
According to an October 10 statement by the IDF, there were 48 hostages in the captivity of Hamas.
Today, following the release of seven hostages by Hamas, the IDF stated that it is prepared to receive additional hostages who are expected to be transferred to the Red Cross later on.
Meanwhile, Palestinian prisoners are also due to be released Monday. All 1,966 prisoners expected to be released on Monday boarded buses earlier today, Reuters reported, citing an official involved in the operation.
Of those, 250 are due to be released to the West Bank, Jerusalem, and other countries, while 1,716 are expected to be released at Gaza's Nasser Hospital, it said.
Israel's President Isaac Herzog will, in the coming months, award U.S. President Donald Trump the Israeli Presidential Medal of Honor in recognition of his efforts to bring back Israeli hostages who were held in Gaza.
“President Trump’s legacy will be remembered for generations by the State of Israel and the Jewish people," Herzog is quoted as saying by Reuters in a statement earlier.
The Israeli Presidential Medal is Israel's highest civilian honor and is awarded to those who have made an outstanding contribution to the State of Israel or to humanity through their talents, service, or other means, Reuters said.
According to the news agency, in 2022, Herzog also gave U.S. President Joe Biden a Presidential Medal of Honor, while former U.S. presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton were given the award in 2013 by then Israeli President Shimon Peres.
President Donald Trump, who brokered the ceasefire, landed in Israel before 10 a.m. today and was received by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara, together with President Isaac Herzog and his wife Michal, at Ben-Gurion International Airport in Israel.
From the airport, Netanyahu rode in the limousine known as "the Beast" with Trump, and the two leaders departed for the Knesset. President Trump is due to address the Knesset today.
Meanwhile, buses carrying Palestinian prisoners have begun moving out of Ofer Prison in the West Bank, Reuters reported.
At Israel's Knesset, Trump was seen signing a guestbook. "This is my great honor - a great and beautiful day. A new beginning," he wrote.
The Reuters report added that as Trump walked into the Knesset, he told reporters that Hamas would comply with the plan to disarm.
It further noted that further steps in Trump's 20-point plan have yet to be agreed. The plan includes how the demolished Gaza Strip will be governed once fighting ends, and the ultimate fate of Hamas, which has rejected Israel's demands for disarmament.
(For more news apart from “Ab1st Seven Israeli Hostages Handed Over in Gaza; 13 More on the Way: Confrims IDFr,” stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman.)
