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AAfter two years of heartache and several failed ceasefires, the family of hostage Guy Gilboa-broker dare not believe that their long nightmare is over.
Seized at the Nova music festival during the bloody October 7 attack Mostly conducted underground In the tunnels, the emaciated 24-year-old was filmed twice during his captivity – once, brutally, to show him giving up his freedom to someone else.
But he was finally released on Monday – one of 20 hostages freed after one of the bloodiest conflicts in this generation – amid joy and deep pain for both their families. israel And Palestine,
“For so long we have dreamed of this day,” said her father, Ilan, in a group hug with the family. “Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord.”
Tel Aviv, destroyed Gaza And in the occupied West Bank, families were finally reunited, embracing and crying uncontrollably in scenes that were repeated throughout the day.
in a deal brokered by donald trumpAll 20 surviving Israeli hostages and were prisoners were released back to their families And approximately 2,000 Palestinians were freed from Israeli prisons.
These included hundreds of Palestinians arrested in Gaza, who were sent back home only to see destruction and devastation.
Despite the flaws in the US President’s 20-point plan for peace and big questions about what will happen to Gaza, the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian people and their right to self-determination, there were moments of genuine joy.
In Hostages Square in central Tel Aviv, thousands of supporters gathered at midnight to witness the moment they had been waiting for for two years.
Spontaneous dance parties broke out in the streets, and shortly after 8 a.m., blurry images of the people involved began to appear on giant screens set up in the square.
Slender, pale and mostly dressed in military fatigues, now-familiar faces emerged into the sunlight from Red Cross vehicles and Israeli military helicopters.
Loud cheers erupted whenever Mr Trump – who spent a few hours in Israel – was greeted by the audience. Knesset “The Pinnacle of Peace” – appeared on screen before flying to Egypt for a victory tour after the deal.
He told Israeli lawmakers that “they have won”, adding: “Now is the time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East.”
smiling benjamin netanyahu He praised Mr Trump, calling him “the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House”, and promised to work with him going forward.
Protesters, who take to the streets every weekend to call on the Israeli Prime Minister to agree to a ceasefire agreement, described the sentiment as “incredible”.
“If it had been up to Netanyahu this wouldn’t have happened,” says Diti, 27, as another round of releases was announced over the loudspeaker.
“Hopefully, we will have a normal country and peace. Hopefully, Palestinians in Gaza can return to their lives again – we hope this is the beginning of peace.”
In Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, families of hundreds of released Palestinians also waited anxiously for news outside Israel’s notorious Ofer prison.
One mother – who had not seen her son Nadir Dar Ahmed, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, for more than two years – fell to the ground in tears when the buses finally appeared.
But control by Israeli security forces put a halt to their celebrations. Palestinian families reported that soldiers raided the homes of relatives on the eve of their release, warning them not to celebrate – and even breaking down decorations and furniture already set up for guests.
Those freed also included more than 150 life-sentenced prisoners who were not allowed to go home but were deported to Egypt, Turkey or Qatar. Israel has reportedly imposed a travel ban on up to a hundred relatives of prisoners, effectively separating families.
Even this did not stop the moments of happiness in central Ramallah. Crying on the ground near the buses was the family of Dar Ahmed, who was sentenced to four years in prison after a 20-year prison sentence for planning the Jerusalem stabbings, a charge he has always denied.
“It’s an indescribable feeling,” says his sister Hidayah, explaining that the family has not seen him since the war began.
In Gaza, frantic families were scouring prisoner lists at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis for news of their missing loved ones.
Of the approximately 1,700 Palestinians arrested in Gaza since October 7, 22 were children. All are understood to be detained without trial or conviction under the highly controversial “unlawful combatant” law.
IndependentIts investigation of the treatment of Palestinian detainees revealed evidence of ill-treatment, torture, sexual violence, and even deaths in custody.
Despite the destruction of the besieged area, which has been bombed and where local officials put the death toll at 67,000, families still played patriotic songs, danced and cried as the first buses passed through the crowd at 3 p.m.
At one point, a young man could be seen climbing over the side of the bus and embracing a freed prisoner through the window of the moving vehicle.
But it wasn’t all fun. Naseem al-Radia, 30, of northern Gaza, had been detained without charge since December 2023, when he returned to find almost his entire family killed and his home destroyed.
His wife, son, two daughters and mother-in-law were all killed in Israeli strikes. Only his four year old daughter and mother are left in the family. “I left jail today thinking about my family and meeting them,” he said.
“Their image has never left my memory, and they were the first people I wanted to meet. The longing for them and all visions of meeting them have disappeared; all that has become a mirage.
“I am now a prisoner of sorrow. This day has turned into a nightmare. My heart is filled with immeasurable pain.”