British hostage ‘to be among 33 freed prisoners’ in first phase of Gaza deal as timed…

January 18, 2025, 07:37 | Updated: 18 January 2025, 09:42

The last remaining British hostage is set to be among the 33 prisoners freed in the first phase of the ceasefire deal, which is due to come into force on Sunday morning at 8.30am local time.

Emily Damari, 28, will be among those freed after being taken by Hamas from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Azaon during the October 7, 2023 attacks, according to multiple Israeli media reports.

The 33 hostages to be freed first are believed to be women, children, men over 50 and sick or injured people.

The overall deal involves exchanging the remaining hostages seized in the attacks for Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. It is unclear how many are still alive.

The deal was agreed at an Israeli cabinet meeting that lasted more than six hours. Qatar, which brokered the deal, said this morning that the deal would come into force at 8.30am Sunday morning local time (6.30am UK time).

The six-week ceasefire was bitterly opposed by some hardline politicians.

Damari’s mother Mandy welcomed the news of her daughter’s release but said she was not getting ahead of herself.

“My nightmare still continues until I see Emily and all the other 98 hostages back in Israel with their families,” she said.

Under the agreement, 33 Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for 15 months will be exchanged for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

The 33 to be freed first are: Liri Albag, Itzhak Elgarat, Karina Ariev, Ohad Ben Ami, Ariel Bibas, Yarden Bibas, Kfir Bibas, Shiri Bibas, Agam Berger, Gonen Romi, Daniella Gilboa, Emily Damari, Sagui Dekel Chen , Iair Horn, Omer Wenkert, Alexandre Sasha Troufanov, Arbel Yehoud, Ohad Yahalomi, Eliya Cohen, Or Levy, Naama Levy, Oded Lifshitz, Gadi Moshe Mozes, Avraham (Avera) Mengisto, Shlomo Mantzur, Keith Samuel Sigal, Tsachi Idan, Ofer Kalderon, Tal Shoham, Doron Steinbrecher, Omer Shem Tov, Hisham Al-Sayed and Eli Sharabi.

This exchange will take place in the first phase, which will last six weeks.

In this phase, Israeli forces will also withdraw from densely populated areas of Gaza, displaced Palestinians will be allowed to begin returning to their homes, and hundreds of aid trucks will be allowed to enter the territory each day.

Negotiations on the second phase – aimed at the release of the remaining hostages, a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops and the restoration of long-term peace – will begin on the 16th.

The third and final phase will focus on rebuilding Gaza, a process that could take years, as well as returning the bodies of any remaining hostages.

Many Israelis support a ceasefire deal that would bring the hostages home and end the war in Gaza.

But some families of fallen soldiers and hostages oppose any deal, which they see as making too many concessions to Hamas.

Keir Starmer welcomed the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal as “long overdue news” and paid tribute to British citizens killed in the conflict.

The British prime minister said Britain would join its allies in continuing work to “break the cycle of violence and secure long-term peace” for Israelis and Palestinians, which he said would be based on a two-state solution.

He paid tribute to “those who will not make it home – including the British people murdered by Hamas.”

Around 34 hostages have been confirmed dead by the IDF.

Ayelet Svatitzky, whose brothers Roi and Nadav Popplewell were murdered, said concern will continue “until the last hostage is home”.

Ms Svatitzky, whose mother Channah Peri was previously taken hostage, said from Israel: “There will never be any closure for us until all the hostages are back.”

Stephen Brisley, whose sister Lianne Sharabi was killed along with her daughters Noiya and Yahel, refuses to get carried away after “so many false dawns”.

Brisley, whose brother-in-law Eli Sharabi was taken hostage, told PA: “It’s still hard to believe it’s happening. Because there have been so many false dawns, there’s still that part of me that doesn’t really allow myself. to still believe it, despite having been formally announced.

“We still don’t know exactly what the framework for it is, exactly what the speed is, they will be released, in what order and if it is spread out over six weeks. Six weeks is a long time, a lot can happen.

“There are still a lot of moving parts that could very easily fall apart, but of course that’s the bit of joy we’ve been looking for, that light at the end of the tunnel.”

He admitted that he was unsure if his brother-in-law was still alive.

He spoke of a potential reunion with Mr. Sharabi, adding: “It’s bittersweet – we don’t know if he knows that my sister, my two nieces, his wife and two daughters are dead.

“My concern is that the hope of being reunited with them is what has kept him going and fueled him for the last 14 months and to find out he’s coming back to nothing is what could break him.

“I just want to be able to put my arms around him and tell him he’s going to be okay and (that) he can go on because he’s coming out alive and rebuilding his life and we’re helping him rebuild his life. , is the one crumb of comfort that our family has held on to.”

The ceasefire will not force Israel to withdraw from Gaza.

Instead, a new buffer zone will be erected where the IDF will station troops to “defend” the country’s border.

At least 46,584 Palestinians have been killed and 109,731 wounded since Israel launched its assault on Gaza following the October 7, 2023 attacks.

The vast majority of those killed in Israel’s bombings have been women and children.