The fourth exchange of hostages, numbering 11, held by Hamas in return for 33 Palestinians released from Israeli prisons is in process as of this writing. After a dispute over the lists of names of those to be released, the process appeared to be back on track by late afternoon local time. Both sides said they had received the lists of names of those to be freed. The Palestinian list included 3 women and 30 minors while the hostage list includes 2 Israeli women and 9 children. By early evening the 11 Israelis were in the hands of the Red Cross.
Last night, 13 Israelis and 4 foreigners were freed by Hamas, while 39 more Palestinians were released from Israeli prisons. Al Jazeera broadcast video of Hamas handing some of the hostages over to the Red Cross in Gaza City from where they were subsequently transported to the border fence and handed over to the IDF. The Times of Israel reported that the Al Jazeera footage may indicate that the hostages were being held in areas of Gaza City that the IDF had not yet reached during its ground offensive.
Of the 39 hostages so far released by Hamas, 2, including 1 from last night, have needed medical treatment. The 1 from last night, an elderly woman, was treated for a life-threatening condition and was reported to still be in critical condition today.
