Israel-Gaza updates: 17 more hostages released, including 4-year-old American girl, officials say
Fourteen Israeli and three foreign hostages were released Sunday, the IDF said.
Thousands of people have died and thousands more have been injured since the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel retaliated with a bombing campaign and total siege of the neighboring Gaza Strip, leaving the region on the verge of all-out war.
Click here for updates from previous days.
Latest headlines:
What we know about the conflict
The latest outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, has passed the four-month mark.
In the Gaza Strip, at least 30,228 people have been killed and 71,377 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 395 people in the territory since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The ongoing war began after Hamas-led militants launched an unprecedented incursion into southern Israel from neighboring Gaza via land, sea and air. Scores of people were killed while more than 200 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli authorities. The Israeli military subsequently launched retaliatory airstrikes followed by a ground invasion of Gaza, a 140-square-mile territory where more than 2 million Palestinians have lived under a blockade imposed by Israel and supported by Egypt since Hamas came to power in 2007. Gaza, unlike Israel, has no air raid sirens or bomb shelters.
Red Cross confirms start of prisoner exchange between Hamas, Israel
The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed Friday that its teams have begun "carrying out a multi-day operation to facilitate the release and transfer of hostages held in Gaza and of Palestinian detainees to the West Bank."
The operation, which is taking place during a four-day cease-fire between Hamas and Israel, will also "include the delivery of additional, much-needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza," according to the ICRC.
"In its role as a neutral intermediary, the ICRC over several days will transfer hostages held in Gaza to Israeli authorities and ultimately their families, and transfer Palestinian detainees to authorities in the West Bank, to be reunited with their families," the organization said in a statement. "The ICRC will also bring in additional medical supplies to be delivered to hospitals in Gaza, reinforcing the aid deliveries the ICRC has already carried out."
The ICRC urged both sides in the war to treat all hostages and detainees "with humanity" and to respect "humanitarian principles ... at all times, including during the releases and transfers."
"The parties to the conflict agreed to the details of the operation, including who would be released and when," the organization added. "The ICRC was not involved in the negotiations, and its role is to help facilitate the agreement as a neutral intermediary."
-ABC News' Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
1st group of Israeli hostages freed by Hamas in Gaza, sources say
The first group of Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross, two sources briefed on the matter told ABC News.
The sources said the Red Cross has the hostages and that the "operation" to get them home has begun.
It was expected that 13 Israeli hostages would be freed by Hamas near Gaza's border with Egypt on Friday in a prisoner exchange deal. But it was unclear exactly how many were handed over to the Red Cross.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman and Morgan Winsor
Thailand says 12 of its nationals were released in Gaza
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced Friday that 12 Thai hostages have been released in the Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt and will be picked up by Thai embassy officials.
"It has been confirmed by the Security Department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that there are 12 Thai hostages already released. Embassy officials are on their way to pick them up in another hour. Their names and details should be known. Please stay tuned," Thavisin wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Egyptian authorities confirmed earlier that 12 Thai nationals held by Hamas in Gaza would be freed at the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing on Friday, in addition to 13 Israeli hostages.
There was no immediate confirmation from Israel on whether any of its nationals were released alongside the 12 Thai hostages.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
12 Thai nationals to be freed alongside 13 Israeli hostages on Friday, Egypt says
Twelve Thai nationals held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip will be released on Friday in addition to 13 Israeli hostages, according to Egypt's State Information Service.
The Israeli hostages will be freed by Hamas at the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, and they will be received by Egyptian authorities before being transferred to Israel, the State Information Service said.
The State Information Service credited "intense Egyptian efforts" for resulting in the agreement with Hamas to release 12 Thai nationals on the sidelines of the prisoner exchange deal between Gaza's militant rulers and Israel.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Netanyahu: War against Hamas will not stop after cease-fire
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking ahead of Tuesday's cabinet meeting and vote on a potential hostage deal, said Israel's war against Hamas will not stop after a cease-fire.
Netanyahu said the war will continue until Hamas is destroyed, all hostages are brought home and Israel has ensured "that there will be no element in Gaza that threatens Israel."
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant added that without the continuation of Israel's operations in Gaza, there'd be no chance of bringing home more hostages.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky