Hamas first included American-Israelke in his hostage editions, since the fire interruption agreement with Israel entered into force two weeks ago.
Hamas surrendered Tala on Saturday, Keith Siegel, a red cross at a ceremony in the city of Gaza, and in the vicinity there were dozens of militants who were a rifle.
Mr. Siegel, 65, and his wife, Aviva Siegel, 63, were abducted in the attack on the Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023. They were taken from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, a small agricultural community near the border of Israel with Gaza.
Palestinian militants released their wife Aviv during a short term in November 2023, and she has since been a campaign for their husband’s freedom.
Mr. Siegel, originally from North Carolina, moved to Israel in 1980, where he worked as a professional therapist. He and his wife have nine children and grandchildren.
In June, the brother of Mr. Siegel, Lee Siegel, described the agony of watching rounds of conversation about the interruption of the fire, only to reject his hopes for days later.
“It’s amazing frustrating once again to have this yo-yo experience,” Lee said at the time. “Every day that passes, it becomes exponentially harder to continue with hope.”
The current interruption of fire was reached after more than a year of indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
On Saturday, Leora Schwartz, Lee’s sister law, said she felt relief when she saw Keith out of captivity.
“You feel like you can breathe again,” she said in a telephone conversation.
Israeli authorities have said to believe that only two other American-Israeli hostages still live. One should be released in the next four weeks and the other in the second phase of interrupting fire.
Israeli authorities have said to believe that the Palestinian militants in Gaza hold four bodies of double American-based citizens.
Hamas and Israel have not yet negotiated the details of the second phase of the tribute, but it is expected that these conversations will start in the coming days.
The cousins of hostages who should go out in the second phase expressed concern that Israel could return to the war against Hamas after the first phase if the militant group does not agree that they will give up their controls over Gaza. They worry that such a scenario could endanger their loved ones.
