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Hostages Sagui Dekel-Chen, Iair Horn, and Sasha Troufanov are expected to be released from a single location in Khan Younis, the same site where two hostages, Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas, were released two weeks ago.
The hostages are expected to be handed over to the International Red Cross in the morning, between 8 and 10 a.m., with Hamas and the Islamic Jihad likely using the transfer as a display of power, as they have done in previous exchanges.
After being handed over to the Red Cross, the hostages will be transferred to Israeli forces in Gaza and reunited with their families at the initial reception point in the Re’im Camp. Following a medical evaluation, they will be flown by helicopter to the Sheba and Sourasky medical centers in Israel.
The Health Ministry announced that the Barzilai and Soroka hospitals will be prepared to offer immediate medical care if necessary. "Medical teams and professionals at the hospitals are ready to provide any required treatment, including psychological support," the ministry stated. "As news and videos from Gaza circulate, we continue to urge the public to be responsible in managing exposure to such content, especially for children."
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The ministry also emphasized the importance of avoiding malicious rumors regarding the hostages and urged the public to rely solely on official sources. "These are sensitive moments for the hostages and their families, and we ask for privacy to be respected to ensure their safe return, recovery, and rehabilitation."
Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36, was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz, while his wife, Avital, then seven months pregnant, hid in the safe room with their two young daughters. Before Hamas terrorists reached him, Dekel-Chen managed to tell his wife that no Israeli forces were coming to defend the kibbutz.
Avital and their daughters remained safe, and in his absence, their third child, Shahar, was born. His family has been at the forefront of U.S. lobbying efforts, advocating for his release.
Sasha Troufanov, 29, from Tel Aviv, was visiting his mother, Elena, and grandmother, Irena Tati, at Kibbutz Nir Oz when Hamas launched its attack. His father Vitaliy was murdered, and Troufanov, along with his mother, grandmother, and girlfriend Sapir Cohen, was taken hostage. The women were freed in the November 2023 hostage deal, but Troufanov remained in captivity under Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Iair Horn, 46, was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz alongside his younger brother, Eitan, who had come to visit from Kfar Saba. Their family had immigrated to Israel from Argentina, and their mother, Ruthie Horn, said they only received confirmation of Iair being alive from freed hostages in November 2023.
However, Eitan, 38, is not among the hostages set to be released in the first, humanitarian phase of the deal.