Who are the final six living Israel hostages released in first phase of Hamas ceasefire deal?

Hamas on Saturday handed over the final six living Israeli hostages as part of the first phase of the ceasefire deal.

Two of these hostages, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, have been under Hamas captivity after they entered the Gaza Strip on their own in 2014 and 2015.

The other four are Tal Shoham, Omer Shem Tov, Omer Wenkert and Eliya Cohen who were abucted on October 7, 2023, from the Nova music festival.

Avera Mengistu

Avera Mengistu, now 37, had been under captivity since 3,821 days before his release. Mengistu, who was 28 back then, jumped the fence at the Zikim beach in September 2014.

Though IDF security cameras spotted him, he crossed into Gaza and a Hamas patrol team nabbed him. There was no information about him until 2023, when Hamas released a video showing signs of life in him.

Hisham al-Sayed

Hisham al-Sayed, now 37, also crossed into Gaza on his own in April 2015. A Bedouin Israeli, he is from Hara, a village in the Negev desert. In 2022, he was seen in a video released by Hamas.

Tal Shoham

Tal Shoham, 39, who holds a dual Israel-Austria citizenship, is from Maale Tzviya in northern Israel. He was abducted by Hamas on October 7 when he was visiting his wife's relatives based in Kibbutz Be'eri.

Some of his family members, including wife Adi Shoham, daughter Yahel, 3, son Naveh, 8, were also taken to Gaza. They were released on November 25, 2023, as part of a week-long ceasefire deal.

Omer Wenkert

Omer Wenkert, 23, was also taken hostage from the same music festival. He contacted his parents last at 7.50 am on October 7.

Liam Or, a fellow hostage who was with Wenkert and was released in November 2023, said they were fed three dates a day. He reportedly suffered from colitis and people diagnosed with the disease cannot eat dates due to its dietary fibre content.

Eliya Cohen

Eliya Cohen, 27, and his fiancee Ziv Aboud were at the Nova music festival when they were abducted. Though they tried to flee, the militants fired at them. They hid among dead bodies but Aboud, who managed escape, later recalled that he was pulled out and carried on a pickup truck. This was the same vehicle that carried Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Or Levy and Alon Ohel.

Omer Shem Tov

Omer Shem Tov, 22, sent his live location to his family before he was abducted by Hamas. He was abducted along with his friends Mia and Itai Regev but the duo was released later. The relatives saw his phone location heading to Gaza from the Nova festival.