A Message from Home and Passover in Gaza: Freed Hostages Share Snippets of Time in Captivity

Friday, 31 January 2025 | Eight Israeli hostages were released from Gaza as part of the deal with Hamas on Thursday, including Israelis Arbel Yehoud, Agam Berger and Gadi Mozes, along with five Thai nationals.

Yehoud, 29, was held alone since October 7 and met another Israeli for the first time only hours before her release—Mozes, 80. The Islamic Jihad released a video of them embracing before being handed over.

Both were abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz, where one in four residents was either kidnapped or killed in the October 7 attack. Yehoud was unaware of the full extent of the massacre. Mozes told his children he had seen their relatives interviewed on TV, including Al Jazeera.

"I once heard your mother speaking on the radio," he told them upon their reunion at an IDF reception center. " I will do everything in my power to restore Nir Oz."

Berger, 20, was the last of the female IDF lookouts from the Nahal Oz base to remain in captivity. She spent much of her time with fellow hostage Liri Albag. The lookouts avoided eating leavened bread during Passover and tried to fast on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Berger also observed the Sabbath. On her way to the hospital, she wrote a message on a board: "I chose the path of faith, and in faith I returned."

The five lookouts were held both above and below ground. Naama Levy, released in a previous exchange, was kept alone for a long period before being reunited with her comrades. "Is this real? Are you alive?" she asked them. In many cases, they were housed with families, where they were made to cook, clean and care for children.

They exercised to pass the time, despite poor conditions and little food. Their captors forbade them from holding hands or crying but they found ways to support each other. Daniella Gilboa and Karina Ariev, longtime friends from their shared service, were held together most of the time.

Mozes, Berger and Yehoud were released in the third exchange of the hostage deal after Hamas delayed Yehoud's release, despite her civilian status making her eligible for an earlier phase.

Hamas continued to stage the hostage transfers as public spectacles—Berger was released in devastated Jabaliya and forced onto a platform, while Mozes and Yehoud were led through a crowd near the ruins of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s home in Khan Younis

The five Thai hostages—Sathian Suwannakham, 34, Pongsak Thaenna, 35, Bannawat Saethao, 27, Watchara Sriaoun, 32, and Surasak Lamnao, 30 — were freed as part of a separate deal between Thailand and Hamas, though it remains unclear if a price was paid for their freedom.

One more Thai hostage remains in captivity, along with two who were killed in the attack. A Nepali citizen is also held, while a Tanzanian captive was killed by terrorists.

Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad struggled to maintain order during the Khan Younis handover, as Yehoud and Mozes were forced through an angry crowd. In response, Israel delayed the release of 110 Palestinian prisoners, with prison buses ordered to turn back.

A later agreement was reached after mediators assured Israel of "safe passage" for future hostages. The prisoners were then released, including 30 serving life sentences.

After the latest exchange, 82 hostages remain in Gaza, 35 of whom Israel has declared dead. In the coming weeks, 23 more hostages are expected to be released, including an estimated eight deceased. Hamas is set to release three men on Saturday, with their names to be confirmed Friday.