Two young Bedouins and six women between the ages of 21 and 41, including a French-Israeli woman, Mia Schem. Here's what we know about the eight Israeli hostages freed by Hamas on Thursday, according to accounts from their relatives to AFP, reports in the Israeli press and the Hostage Families Forum. In addition to the eight hostages, two Russian-Israeli women were released on Wednesday, bringing the total number of hostages included in Thursday's exchange to ten, in line with the terms of the exchanges agreed between the belligerents.
The releases bring to 110 the number of freed hostages, Israelis and foreigners, more than 45 percent of the nearly 240 people held captive in Gaza since their abduction on October 7. Among them, 80 women, children and young people under the age of 19 have been released since Friday, in exchange for the release of 210 Palestinian prisoners, as part of the truce agreement between Israel and Hamas. Thirty other Palestinian detainees are due to be released on Thursday night. Also released outside the framework of the agreement were 23 Thais, one Filipino and one Russian-Israeli. Five hostages had previously been freed in October, before the truce.
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Aisha and Bilal al-Zayadna, 17 and 18 years old
Bilal al-Zayadna, 18, and his younger sister Aisha, 17, were abducted along with their father Youssef (53) and older brother Hamza (22) from Kibbutz Holit, where they were helping to harvest olives.
Bilal al-Zayadna. COURTESY OF FAMILY / REUTERS
The Bedouin family, originally from Rahat, a town in the desert region of southern Israel, worked by the day in agriculture. Shortly after the October 7 attack, the operations manager employing them told their families that CCTV had captured Aisha and her father being escorted by armed men.
Aisha al-Zayadna. COURTESY OF FAMILY / REUTERS
Mia Schem, 21
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I'm begging the world to give me back my baby!": Keren, the mother of French-Israeli Mia Schem (21), moved heaven and earth to raise awareness among "world leaders" about her daughter's plight. On the morning of Saturday, October 7, Mia was participating in the Tribe of Nova music festival with her friend Elya Toledano (27 years old, still in captivity), also French-Israeli. Trying to flee, they discovered that the tires of their cars had been slashed. "They're shooting at us, come and help us," she texted a friend shortly after 07:00 a.m.
The young woman, wounded in the arm, was the first hostage to appear in a video released by Hamas on October 16. French on her father's side, Mia Schem, who works in a tattoo parlor, is the fourth French-Israeli to be released, after Eitan, Erez and Sahar, three teenagers released on Monday.
Mia Schem. ALINE MANOUKIAN / AFP
Shani Goren, 29
Shani Goren, who suffers from panic attacks, was on the phone with her sister-in-law when the attackers took her hostage at her home. Her abduction, on a tractor-driven trailer with four neighbours, was filmed.
Of Israeli and Uruguayan nationality, Shani Goren, the youngest of three siblings, was born and raised in Nir Oz. Both of his parents, who live separately on the kibbutz, survived the onslaught. She works with children as an educational counsellor.
Shani Goren. HOSTAGES AND MISSING FAMILIES FO / REUTERS
Sapir Cohen, 29
Sapir Cohen, 29, was kidnapped along with her Russian-Israeli boyfriend Sasha Trupanov (28) in Nir Oz, where the couple, who recently moved to Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, were visiting Sasha's family. Their friends quickly managed to identify Sapir in a video circulated on social media.
Sasha's mother and grandmother, who were also taken hostage, were freed on Wednesday, outside the agreement between Israel and Hamas, thanks to direct exchanges with Moscow. Sasha, whose father died in the attack, remains in Gaza.
Sapir Cohen. HOSTAGES AND MISSING FAMILIES FO / REUTERS
Ilana Gritzewsky, 30
Ilana Gritzewsky, a 30-year-old Mexican-Israeli, was abducted from her home in Nir Oz. She had taken refuge with her partner Matan Zangauker (24) in their room -- the safe room of their house--, before being evicted by the attackers.
Matan, who is also considered a hostage, has not been released. Originally from Cancún, in the Yucatan Peninsula (eastern Mexico), Ilana immigrated to Israel in the late 2000s. Her parents later joined her there.
Ilana Gritzewsky. HOSTAGES AND MISSING FAMILIES FO / REUTERS
Amit Soussana, 40 years old
Amit Soussana, 7, had been in a fever on the morning of 40 October and had remained at her home, where she lives alone, when her kibbutz Kfar Aza was stormed by armed men. She told her family shortly after 10:00 a.m. that she was going to hide in a closet in her secure room and that her phone was dead. This was his last sign of life.
Initially uncertain, his hostage status was not confirmed until three weeks later. Amit Soussana, an intellectual property lawyer and owner of three cats, enjoys playing tennis, listening to rock music and watching The Sopranos.
Amit Soussana. HOSTAGES AND MISSING FAMILIES FO / REUTERS
Nili Margalit, 41
Nili Margalit, a 41-year-old pediatric nurse at Soroka Hospital in central Israel, lent her skills to other hostages in Gaza's tunnels, according to accounts from ex-hostage Yocheved Lifshitz, an octogenarian who was released in October.
She had been captured at her home in Nir Oz. Ensconced in her mamad, her safe room, with her dog Natchy-Natch, she had communicated with friends by text message, before stopping giving any sign of life shortly after 09:00 a.m. His house was burned to the ground, making it difficult to confirm his abduction, which only came weeks later. His father Eliyahu Margalit is still in captivity.
Nili Margalit. HOSTAGES AND MISSING FAMILIES FO / REUTERS