17 hostages released in second group amid temporary cease-fire in Gaza

A group of 17 hostages were released from the Gaza Strip on Saturday after an hourslong delay and have arrived in Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said.

A group of 17 hostages were released from the Gaza Strip on Saturday after an hourslong delay and have arrived in Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said.

Thirteen Israelis and four Thai nationals were freed Saturday as part of a breakthrough deal between Israel and Hamas to pause fighting. As was expected under the agreement, a second-day release of 39 Palestinian prisoners held by Israeli authorities was implemented, a spokesperson for the Israel Prison Service said early Sunday, local time.

Fifty of an estimated 240 people abducted by militants during the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and 150 Palestinian inmates held by Israeli authorities were expected to have been released by the end of the four-day cease-fire Monday.

The Red Cross transferred the hostages to Egypt, and they later underwent an initial medical assessment inside Israeli territory and were brought to hospitals in Israel to reunite with their families, according to the IDF.

The release followed a delay earlier in the day over allegations from Hamas that Israel violated terms of the deal, including over claims that it had not released prisoners in the agreed-upon order.