Who are the first 51 Israeli hostages released by Hamas? | World News

Israel says 11 more hostages have been released from the Gaza Strip by Hamas.

Late on Monday they were said to be having medical checks before being reunited with their families.

Kibbutz Nir Oz said in a statement that all of them were from its community, but that 49 were still being held.

It’s the fourth release of hostages under a ceasefire deal that began on Friday and Israel is set to free 33 Palestinian prisoners in exchange.

The truce was set to end early on Tuesday, but mediator Qatar said it would now be extended for two days.

Some 240 people were kidnapped during the deadly Hamas attack – the names of those released as of Monday night are:

Eitan Yahalomi, 12

Eitan is described as “a very sensitive boy” who has “a big heart and immense empathy”. He was kidnapped with his father Ohad.

Karina Engel-Bart, 52, and daughters Mika Engel, 18, and Yuval Engel, 11

Ms Engel-Bart has just recovered from breast cancer after two years of treatment and surgeries and is still taking medication for it.

She was kidnapped with her husband and their two daughters from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Her husband, Ronen, remains a Hamas captive.

Sahar Kalderon, 16, and Erez Kalderon, 12

Sahar is described as loving art, drawing, sculpting clay, and listening to Korean pop and Billie Eilish. She also plays the bass.

Erez plays the trumpet, likes video games and has “very cynical” sense of humour “like a stand-up comedian”.

Their grandmother, Carmela Dan, was murdered in the Hamas attack and their dad, Ofer, was still being held hostage when they were released.

Or Yaakov, 16, and Yagil Yaakov, 12

Or is described as introverted, polite and a “delicate and sensitive soul” – who’s also addicted to Fortnite and loves going to the gym.

His brother Yagil is described as a “12-year-old who acts like he’s 22” who loves being the centre of attention and is the “class clown”.

The boys’ father, Yair, is also still being held by Hamas.

Sharon Aloni Cunio, 34, and twins Ema Cunio and Yuly Cunio, both three

Ms Cunio is personal adviser for the head of Ashkol regional council. She once did PR for a film and later ended up marrying its lead actor, David.

He wasn’t released alongside her. Her brother-in-law, Ariel, is also still a hostage.

The twins are described as “full of love” and “true kibbutz girls” who prefer trucks and mechanical tools over dolls.

Hagar Brodetz, 40, with her children, Ofry, 10, Yuval, eight, and Oriya, who is four

The family was taken hostage together on 7 October.

Chen Goldstein-Almog, with her three children, Agam, who is 17, Gal, 11, and eight-year-old Tal

Ms Goldstein-Almog, 49, is a social worker and was taken by Hamas alongside her children.

Dafna Elyakim, 15, and Ela Elyakim, 8

Abigail Edan, four

Four-year-old Abigail is a dual Israeli-American national, whose parents were reportedly killed in the 7 October attacks.

US President Joe Biden said on the day she was released that her father was “gunned down while using his body to shield little Abigail”, who then ran to a neighbour’s house where she was taken hostage alongside another family.

“What she endured is unthinkable,” Mr Biden told a news conference.

Ron Krivoi, 25

Mr Krivoi is a Russian-Israeli, whom Hamas said it had freed in appreciation of Moscow’s support during the conflict.

Alma Avraham, 84

Ms Avraham was among those freed on 26 November, the third day of the temporary truce deal between Israel and Hamas.

Aviva Adrienne Siegel, 62

Ms Siegel was freed after more than seven weeks in captivity.

Emily Hand, nine

Irish-Israeli schoolgirl Emily was taken from Be’eri on 7 October.

She was sleeping at her best friend’s house when the attack took place.

Her mother, Liat, died of cancer when Emily was two years old. Her father, Thomas, made multiple pleas for her safe return.

Thomas was initially told that Emily’s body had been found, but was later told that she was alive and among the hostages.

Hila Rotem Shoshani, 13

Hila managed to escape her home in Be’eri, but was found hiding in nearby bushes and kidnapped by Hamas militants.

Her mother, Raaya, was also kidnapped.

Hila had recently returned from a holiday in Korea and Thailand, where she had been visiting for her uncle’s wedding.

Maya Regev, 21

Maya was kidnapped, along with her brother Itay and their friend Omer She-Tov, while attending the Re’im festival.

She had gone to the festival hours after landing from Mexico, where she had been on holiday with her family.

Maya is due to go travelling across South America next month.

Noam Or, 17, and his 13-year-old sister, Alma

Noam was kidnapped from kibbutz Be’eri, along with his sister, Alma.

Their mother, Yonat, was murdered during the same attack.

Their eldest brother, Yahli, survived the attack as he was away in northern Israel on national service.

Shiri Weiss, 53, and her 18-year-old daughter, Noga

Described as “very family-oriented”, Shiri Weiss, an accountant for an agricultural association, was kidnapped from Be’eri, alongside her husband, Ilan, and her daughter, Noga.

Friends say Ms Weiss likes being in charge of planning family trips, while Noga has been described as a sports fan – particularly volleyball.

Noga hid under the bed during the attack, but was forced to flee the home after it was set on fire.

She escaped through a window, but was found hiding in bushes and was kidnapped.

Sharon Avigdori, 52, and her 12-year-old daughter, Noam

A drama therapist who works with people on the autism spectrum, Sharon Avigdori was taken with her daughter Noam while visiting her brother in kibbutz Be’eri.

Noam, a member of the Scouts movement, was about to celebrate her Bat Mitzvah when she was taken.

A further seven members of Ms Avigdori’s family were kidnapped and three were murdered on 7 October.

Shoshan Haran, 67, her daughter, Adi Shoham, and her grandchildren, Nave, eight, and Yahel, three

Sharon Haran is the founder of a non-profit organisation, who previously worked on agricultural projects in Africa.

She was taken along with eight members of her family, while her husband, sister, and brother-in-law, were murdered.

Her daughter, Adi Shoham, from Ma’aleh Tzvia, was kidnapped from Be’eri along with her husband and their two children, Nave and Yahel, and five other members of the family.

They were in Be’eri for a holiday visit.

Ms Shoham works as a clinical psychologist, while Nave is a huge fan of the Argentinian football star Lionel Messi, and his sister, Yahel, is a fan of singing.

The names of the hostages released on Friday are:

Adina Moshe, 72

She was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, after Hamas militants killed her husband Sa’id Moshe.

She has four children – Maya, Yael, Sasson, and Amos – and a number of grandchildren.

Her hobbies include cooking, gardening and reading.

Margalit Moses, 77

A cancer survivor, she has diabetes and fibromyalgia, and takes additional medications for blood pressure and thyroid.

She is said to be a sworn nature lover, especially of birds, and loves hiking despite her poor health.

Last summer she went on sailing trip in northern Norway and had plans to visit Mozambique this winter. Margalit’s other hobbies include knitting.

Daniel Aloni, 45, and her six-year-old daughter Emilia

The pair were kidnapped in Nir Oz while visiting Daniel’s sister Sharon Aloni-Cunio – who was also kidnapped along with her three-year-old twins Emma and Yuli, and their father David Cunio.

On 7 October at 11am Daniel sent a “last message” to her family which said there were terrorists in the house and she was afraid they would not survive.

Ruthy Munder, 78, Keren Munder, 54 and nine-year-old Ohad Munder

Ohad was kidnapped along with his mother, Keren, while they were visiting his grandmother Ruthy, who was also seized. He reportedly turned nine while in captivity. His mother is a teacher and children’s volleyball coach.

Ruthy Munder’s hobbies are said to include knitting, painting and sewing. Her husband, Ohad’s grandfather, was also kidnapped and is still being held by Hamas, it is thought.

Doron Katz Asher, 34, and her daughters Aviv, two, and Raz, four

The trio were kidnapped during a visit to relatives, including the girls’ grandmother, in Kibbutz Nir Oz.

Ms Katz Asher works as an accountant.

Hanna Peri, 79

The mother-of-three immigrated to Israel from South Africa in the 1960s. She works in a grocery store.

Ms Peri is said to have diabetes and suffers from severe vision loss in one eye. Her hobbies including gardening, Tai Chi and looking after her pet cat.

Footage, apparently of her, being taken away on a golf buggy went viral following Hamas’s attack.

Yaffa Adar, 85

Ms Adar has three children, eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

One of her grandchildren, Tamir Adar, 38, was kidnapped alongside her and is still thought to be held by Hamas.

Hana Katzir, 76

Ms Katzir was the 13th hostage to be released on Friday. Hamas forces reportedly claimed earlier this week that she had died in captivity.