The families of Israeli hostages still held by the Hamas militant group have released the names of three hostages expected to be freed on Saturday. The three men are all Israeli civilians with dual nationalities, the AP reports. All were from the same communal farm, Kibbutz Nir Oz, where some 80 of roughly 400 residents were taken hostage in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack. The men are Israeli-Argentine Iair Horn, 46, Israeli-Russian Alexander (Sasha) Troufanov, 29, and Israeli-American Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36.
Chen was outside working on a bus renovation when militants stormed the kibbutz. His wife, Avital, hid in a safe room with their two daughters. Avital was seven months pregnant and gave birth to a third daughter, Shachar Mazal, in December 2023, while Dekel Chen was in captivity. The Hostages Families Forum said Friday in a statement that it welcomed the "joyous news" that the men are set to be freed after 498 days in Hamas captivity.
The news came after Hamas said Thursday it would release the next three Israeli hostages as planned this weekend in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, raising the prospect of resolving a major dispute over the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Israel, with the support of President Trump, has said it will resume fighting if the hostages are not freed, but did not immediately comment on the statement by Hamas. Trump said Monday that "all hell will break out" if all remaining hostages were not freed by noon Saturday.
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