Three Israeli hostages are freed by Hamas as Israel releases 369 Palestinian prisoners in exchange. The sixth swap of the ceasefire comes after there were fears the deal could collapse this week. Of the 369 Palestinians freed on Saturday, 333 had been arrested in the Gaza Strip and held in Israeli prisons following the Hamas-led terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Those 333 will be returned to Gaza following their release on Saturday. Of the other 36, some will be released in the West Bank and others will be released in Gaza, Israeli officials said.
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During the press meet with the Indian prime minister, the reporter asked the US president about his decision to extradite Pakistani national and accused terrorist Tahawwur Hussain Rana to India and the rising anti-India voices in the US. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. Compare our rate and fee with our competitors and see the difference for yourself. Analyze rate trends for any currency over a few days, weeks, months, or years.
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Get an automated currency feed through the Xe Currency Data API. Footage of the “emotional meeting” of Israeli hostage Alexander (Sasha) Troufanov reuniting with his grandmother has been released by the office of Benjamin Netanyahu. “The combination of the IDF’s reinforcement around the Gaza Strip and President Trump’s firm stance led to the release of three of our hostages today—despite Hamas’s previous refusal to free them.”
Hamas, Israel complete sixth prisoner exchange of Gaza ceasefire
As we reported earlier, it was believed Netanyahu had spoken with ministers, the heads of the negotiating team and senior defence officials, over the phone to discuss the release of remaining hostages. The leader of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum in the UK has said they are “really fighting” for the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. In exchange for Hamas releasing three more Israeli hostages, Israel began freeing another 369 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday, most of whom were arrested in the Gaza Strip after the terror attack on Oct. 7, 2023. LONDON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene his political-security cabinet “as soon as possible” to decide “Israel’s next steps” shortly after President Donald Trump’s noon deadline for Hamas to release all remaining hostages passed. The exchange, which saw 369 Palestinian prisoners released in return, went ahead after a tense stand-off that had threatened to shatter the fragile ceasefire.
- Since the ceasefire began on 19 January, 16 Israeli and five Thai hostages have been released in exchange for 766 prisoners.
- Waltz said Mr Fogel’s release was a “sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine”.
- After intense efforts by Egyptian and Qatari mediators to keep the agreement on track, Hamas said it would go ahead with the planned release of hostages.
- “My husband and I talked about it, and if this offer was legitimate, it seemed like, wow… I could potentially be making double salary for six months, which would give him some time to regroup and find a job he cares about.”
- So far, 18 hostages have been freed in exchange for over 550 Palestinian prisoners as part of the first phase of the deal.
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He also appeared to accuse the US of breaking a confidentiality agreement about the exchange. “Any agreement on the release of citizens… [is] preceded by very, very scrupulous negotiating work. Of course, such agreements are unlikely to become a turning point,” he said. The history teacher was detained after travelling with what his family said was medically prescribed cannabis.
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She said the families of those still in Gaza are “constantly stressed” not knowing if their relatives will be released or not in the coming weeks. The 36-year-old was one of three hostages released today by Hamas. One of the signs held by protesters reads “don’t kill the deal” referring to the fragile ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The office of Javier Milei said in a statement that the 46-year-old’s release came within the “framework of a ceasefire between the state of Israel and Hamas promoted by the President of the United States, Donald Trump”. Former US president Joe Biden has said he and his wife, Jill, are “relieved” American-Israeli hostage Sagui Dekel Chen has been reunited with his family. A bus carrying some of the released Palestinian prisoners arrived in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where they were greeted by a cheering crowd.
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Three more Israeli hostages were released Saturday in exchange for dozens of Palestinian prisoners as the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas continued to hold. It was the fifth hostage and prisoner exchange to occur as part of the first phase of the deal, which began on Jan. 19. Our exchange rate API offers real-time, accurate, and reliable data for hundreds of currencies. Xe’s proprietary rates are sourced directly from financial data providers and reputable banks. “We have prepared for their return and, together with the families, we will assist in their rehabilitation after the long and torturous days in captivity,” read a statement from the Israeli prime minister’s office.
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Anne Fogel told the BBC at the time of feeling “betrayal” when she learnt that her brother was not included in the prisoner exchange – which Biden had lauded as a “feat of diplomacy”. “President Trump secured Marc’s release in just a few weeks, wasting no time in taking decisive action to bring Marc home,” a statement from his lawyers, also sent to CBS, said. A Russian national imprisoned in a US jail on money laundering charges will be freed in exchange for the release of American schoolteacher Marc Fogel from prison in Russia, authorities have confirmed. They add hidden markups to their exchange rates – charging you more without your knowledge.
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Responding to Trump’s message earlier today – which said the US would “back” Israel in “any decision they make” regarding the release of all the remaining hostages – the Israeli prime minister said he values the president’s “full support”. Today’s exchange brings the total number of hostages freed during the ceasefire to 24, while more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners have been released. However, around 73 hostages remain Cash to USDT Texas in Gaza, with half feared dead. Israel released hundreds of Palestinian prisoners on Saturday in exchange for three Israeli captives freed by Hamas, completing the sixth prisoner exchange since the ceasefire came into effect last month. Hamas has released the names of three hostages due to be freed on Saturday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel, after days of fears over the future of the ceasefire.
Watch: Crowds gather to welcome freed Palestinian prisoners
One of the Palestinian prisoners released by Israel earlier today described the conditions in Israeli detention centres as “more difficult than you can imagine”. In the statement on X, Biden continued to say he is “proud” that the “deal we negotiated has held, paving the way for the release of hostages”. IDF officers from the Personnel Directorate and IDF medical officials are accompanying the returning hostages. The families of the hostages are currently waiting at the hospital and are being updated by IDF officials with the latest available information.
US basketball star Brittney Griner, who was arrested in Russia on a similar charge of cannabis possession in 2022, was freed in an exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout 10 months later. Hundreds of thousands of people, the majority of them soldiers, are believed to have been killed since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly three years ago. Simply input your amount in the currency calculator above, select your source and destination currency and our tool will convert your currency at the mid-market rate (that’s the one you’ll usually find on Google). Send money abroad using Wise and we’ll use the same rate you see on our currency converter. Thirty-six of those freed had been serving life sentences, 24 of whom were due to be deported as agreed under the terms of the ceasefire, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club. Haley Ott is the CBS News Digital international reporter, based in the CBS News London bureau.
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This story has been updated with the official names of the hostages, per the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Israel on Saturday and was met by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Now, Goggin worries whether social workers at the VA will be able to abide by that code, given Trump’s executives actions to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and to recognize male and female as the only two sexes. Goggin originally came to the VA through a postgraduate fellowship, where she worked with incarcerated veterans.
Watch: Released hostage learns daughter’s namepublished at 13:40 Greenwich Mean Time 15 February13:40 GMT 15 February
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that a Russian citizen imprisoned in the US would be returned to Russia in the coming days as part of the exchange. The war was triggered by Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, when gunmen killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages. President Trump said the ceasefire should be scrapped if Hamas did not release all the hostages held in Gaza by midday on Saturday. His family had tried to push former President Joe Biden to secure his release, and were left disappointed when he was left out of prisoner exchanges in 2022 and 2024. Trump said earlier that the prisoner deal with Russia was “very fair, very reasonable”, and that “somebody else is being released tomorrow that you will know of”.
- That historic deal won the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan, among others.
- Three more Israeli hostages were released Saturday in exchange for dozens of Palestinian prisoners as the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas continued to hold.
- Like many federal employees, she was also a bit skeptical of the deal.
- Negotiations on the second phase of the truce are expected to begin in Qatar next week.
- In exchange for Hamas releasing three more Israeli hostages, Israel began freeing another 369 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday, most of whom were arrested in the Gaza Strip after the terror attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
- Hamas has now released 21 of the 33 prisoners it agreed to free during the first phase of the ceasefire.
- For its part, Hamas has accused Israel of preventing what the group says are the amount of tents and aid lorries required to be let into Gaza under the terms of the ceasefire.
- Vinnik, who operated cryptocurrency exchange BTC-e, pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in 2024.
Schedule international transfers across 130 currencies in 190+ countries. Get a daily analysis of markets, exchange rates, and news straight in your inbox. The Palestinian group had accused Israel of multiple violations of the truce agreement, prompting US President Donald Trump and the Israeli government to threaten an immediate return to war if it didn’t release the captives on Saturday. The exchange was the sixth since the 42-day ceasefire came into force on 19 January and went ahead despite Hamas threatened to suspend the releases a few days earlier.
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- Recent examples include an extensive Covid-19 PPE Visor project involving the use of our own 3D printers and 3D Modelling software.
- Three Israeli hostages are freed by Hamas as Israel releases 369 Palestinian prisoners in exchange.
- Of the other 36, some will be released in the West Bank and others will be released in Gaza, Israeli officials said.
- Trump announced earlier on Tuesday that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent would travel to Ukraine later this week.
- The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
- Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said the exchange was “a product of one of the channels, through which these contacts are carried out”.
In December, the US government designated him as wrongfully detained. A total of 70 hostages taken during 7 October attacks are still believed to be in Gaza. Hamas releases three more Israelis, as 369 Palestinians are handed over in the sixth exchange in recent weeks. For its part, Hamas has accused Israel of preventing what the group says are the amount of tents and aid lorries required to be let into Gaza under the terms of the ceasefire. There are 73 hostages taken on 7 October who are still being held in Gaza.
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- In exchange for Hamas releasing three more Israeli hostages, Israel began freeing another 369 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday, most of whom were arrested in the Gaza Strip after the terror attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
- Negotiations on the second phase of the truce are expected to begin in Qatar next week.
- Thanks for the great welcome RAF Lossiemouth Friends and Families Day.
- Lovely to meet lots of enthusiastic young people sharing an interest in coding, 3D printing & computing science.
- The stunt came as the militant group released three Israeli hostages – Iair Horn, Sagui Dekel-Chen and Sasha Troufanov – after 498 days in captivity.
- Former US president Joe Biden has said he and his wife, Jill, are “relieved” American-Israeli hostage Sagui Dekel Chen has been reunited with his family.
- Office of Personnel Management (OPM) went to nearly all federal employees — some 2.3 million people across the U.S.
“Three returning hostages are currently being accompanied by IDF special forces and ISA forces on their return to Israeli territory, where they will undergo an initial medical assessment,” the joint statement said. “The commanders and soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces salute and embrace the returning hostages as they make their way home to the State of Israel. The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit asks everyone to respect the privacy of the returning hostages and their families.” The returning hostages crossed the border Saturday into Israeli territory and made their way to an initial reception point in southern Israel, where they were reunited with their families.
So far, 18 hostages have been freed in exchange for over 550 Palestinian prisoners as part of the first phase of the deal. Speaking to Sky’s Barbara Serra, Nivi Feldman, said 14 Israeli hostages are still due to be released as part of phase one of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The truce now enters a critical second phase, which calls for all remaining hostages to be returned and an indefinite extension of the ceasefire. Subsequently, the Biden administration secured the release of three more Americans last year as part of the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. The Americans freed were Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, US Marine veteran Paul Whelan, and Russian-American radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva.
Israel’s onslaught on Gaza has killed more than 48,200 people, mostly civilians, and injured 111,700 others, according to Gaza’s health ministry. Negotiations on the second phase of the truce are expected to begin in Qatar next week. The talks were supposed to have started on 3 February but have been delayed by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “I’ve returned to my family and I’ve returned anew, born again,” one prisoner was quoted by AFP as saying. Israel however never imposed such a deadline, which is also not part of the ceasefire deal. Benjamin Netanyahu has said he “greatly appreciates” support from Donald Trump, adding his “firm stance” helped to secure today’s release of three Israeli hostages.
She replied to the original email with the word “Resign” and hit send. “My husband and I talked about it, and if this offer was legitimate, it seemed like, wow… I could potentially be making double salary for six months, which would give him some time to regroup and find a job he cares about.” Like many federal employees, she was also a bit skeptical of the deal. That historic deal won the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan, among others. Mr Trump said last month his administration was involved in “very serious” talks with Russia about the future of the conflict.
