Hamas released 11 more Israeli hostages – nine children and two mothers – Monday, Israel said.
The Israeli military confirmed that nearly a dozen abductees had been handed over to the Red Cross and returned to Israel.
The hostages are expected to be released in exchange for 33 Palestinian prisoners from Israel.
The recently released hostages were identified as Sharon Cunio, 33, and her 3-year-old twins Emma and Yuli; Karina Engel, 51, and her two daughters Mika, 18, and Yuval, 10; Amit Shani, 16 years old; brother and sister Sahar, 16, and Erez Calderon, 12; and brothers Or, 16, and Yigil Yaakov, 12, the Times of Israel reported.
They will undergo a medical evaluation, with Israeli soldiers ready to accompany them until they are finally reunited with their families after being trapped in Gaza for seven weeks, the IDF said.
Although the White House is confident that two American women may be among the latest group of hostages released from Gaza, officials confirmed that no one with US citizenship was released on Monday.
“We do not believe that there are Americans in this group out today,” US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told CNN.
Hostages Sharon Aloni-Cunio, 34, Emma Cunio, 3, and Yuli Cunio, 3 were among the hostages released. via REUTERS
The representative said the White House still hoped the woman would be among those released in the coming days, after a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was extended through Wednesday.
“We’re working on this, literally around the clock,” Kirby said.
Among the hostages released Monday were three members of the Cunio family, who were kidnapped from their home in Kibbutz Oz on Oct. 7. Sharon’s husband, David, 34, was also kidnapped and remains in Hamas custody in Gaza.
The family had been hosting their relatives – Danielle Aloni, 44, and her 5-year-old daughter Amelia – when Hamas broke into their home and kidnapped the family. Aloni and Amelia were among the first groups released by Hamas Friday.
Cousin Alana Zeitchik of New York City called the release of Sharon and her children a “second miracle.”
“Sharon and our babies Emma and Yuli are on their way home. To see them taken out of there is an indescribable feeling,” Zeitchik wrote on Instagram. “Slowly our hearts are recovering. However, David and his brother Ariel remain in custody, so we still need our third miracle.”
Zeitchik has created the Instagram account “Bring Our Families Home” to plead with the Biden administration to help track down loved ones’ freedom.
Hostage Roni Kirboy (right) was among a group of 17 people released Sunday. via REUTERS Yuli Cunio, 3, and Emma Cunio, 3, who were released after being held hostage. via REUTERS Sahar Kalderon, 16, who was released after being held hostage during the attack on October 7. via REUTERS Or Jacob, 16, is a hostage. via REUTERS Erez Kalderon, 12, has been returned to his family. via REUTERS Another child Eitan Yahalomi, 12, was released. via REUTERS Yuval Engel, 11, who was released after being held hostage. via REUTERS Mika Engel, 18, was taken hostage in October. via REUTERS
The Calderon siblings have also seen their family ask for American help, with their aunt, Abbey Onn of Massachusetts, pleading for their safe return since the war began.
Onn said the brothers, along with four other brothers, were taken from Nir Oz on Oct. 7. when family members received messages about the Hamas invasion.
Amit Shani, 16, who was released after being taken hostage during the October 7 attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. via REUTERS Yagil Jacob, 12, was released from hostage. via REUTERS
“We last heard from them on WhatsApp at noon [that] Saturday,” Onn told CBS. “We got messages all morning that Hamas was in the kibbutz, that there was shooting, and that they were in their house, that they had turned everything upside down in their house and that they were afraid for their lives.”
Karina Engelbert, 51, was taken by the Palestinian militant group Hamas in October but has now been released. via REUTERS
Onn recently appeared on Fox News to call on Hamas to release all the children currently being held in Gaza and for Israel to do whatever it can to make such a deal possible.
“Children have no part in war, so if this agreement allows children as hostages … to go home and start healing from trauma, I think it’s a step in the right direction,” Onn said.
Hostages Emma Cunio, 3, and Yuli Cunio, 3, kidnapped by Hamas terrorists during the October 7 attack on Israel, have been handed over. via REUTERS Hostages handed over by Hamas. via REUTERS Young hostages taken by Hamas terrorists during the October 7 attack have been returned to Israel. via REUTERS The hostages have been held by Hamas for more than 50 days. via REUTERS Armed Hamas terrorists surrender 9 nine children held hostage on Oct. 7. via REUTERS
A temporary lull in the fighting has paved the way for a hostage-prisoner exchange, which has prioritized the release of women and children. Abigail Edan, 4, was released Sunday — the first US citizen to be released during the ceasefire.
If the two American women are released this week, they will be the fourth and fifth US citizens freed by Hamas since the start of the war.
IDF footage revealed the moment the hostages returned to Israeli territory. The IDF 11 were arrested during a Hamas terrorist attack on October 7. Freed IDF Hostages will be examined in hospital before being reunited with their loved ones. The Hamas IDF has freed 58 hostages so far, with 11 more freed Monday. Hamas Press Service/UPI/Shutterstock
US officials believe Hamas is also holding several American men hostage in Gaza and they are unlikely to be included in the current exchange.
With the ceasefire agreement extended for two more days, Hamas has agreed to release at least 20 more hostages, with Israel agreeing to release one Palestinian prisoner for each hostage.
As of Sunday, Hamas had released 58 hostages, including 40 Israelis and 18 foreigners. On the Israeli side, officials have freed 117 women and minors from its prisons.
The total number of Palestinian prisoners who were released included 28 women, two teenage girls and 87 teenage boys. At least 76 inmates do not know what the charges against them are, according to CNN.
The hostages were released to the Red Cross in southern Gaza. Hamas Press Service/UPI/Shutterstock
The latest batch of Palestinian prisoners expected to be released include three women and 30 teenage boys, Hamas officials said.
Israel currently estimates that Hamas has about 198 people held captive in Gaza, about 20 of whom are foreigners. Estimates cannot be independently verified.
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