Hamas set to free 3 Israeli hostages in exchange for 300 prisoners

Three Israeli men that have been held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip since October 2023 are set to be freed in exchange for more than 300 Palestinian prisoners.

At the time of writing, the Israeli hostages were paraded before a crowd in Gaza before being handed to the Red Cross ahead of their return to Israel.

It is the latest indication that the fragile ceasefire that was signed between the two sides last month teetered on the brink of collapse early this week.

The three Israelis being released are Iair Horn, 46, Sagui Dekel Chen, 36, and Alexander (Sasha) Troufanov, 29. All have dual citizenships.

Horn was abducted along with his brother, Eitan, who remains in Hamas’ captivity.

The most well known of the 300 Palestinian prisoners set to be released is Ahmed Barghouti, 48, a close aide of militant leader and iconic Palestinian political figure Marwan Barghouti.

Nearly all the 73 remaining Israeli hostages are men, including soldiers. About half of them are believed to be dead.

The two sides have carried out five exchanges since the ceasefire began on 19 January, with 21 hostages and over 730 Palestinian prisoners freed so far during the first phase of the truce.

The war could resume if no agreement is reached on the more complicated second phase, which calls for the return of all remaining hostages captured in the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023 and an indefinite extension of the truce.