- Hamas released 24 hostages as part of a deal with Israel.
- The hostages have undergone medical tests and are in good condition, an IDF spokesperson said.
The hostages released by Hamas have undergone initial medical tests and are in good condition, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said.
Hamas released 13 Israelis and 11 foreigners, 10 from Thailand and one from the Philippines, on Friday as part of a negotiated four-day pause in fighting.
The released hostages are being taken to the Hatzerim airbase for physical and mental checkups and to call their families, The Times of Israel reported.
They will then be taken to hospitals by Israeli Air Force helicopters, where they will be reunited with their families after 49 days in captivity.
The released Thai hostages will return to Thailand after 48 hours in hospital, the country's foreign ministry said in a statement.
"We must not forget that each and every one of those returning home still has a family member or relative who was murdered or is in captivity in Gaza. It is a great sadness mixed with joy and excitement," Hagari said.
The hostages will undergo an investigative debriefing to "solve the puzzle" of how Hamas treated them during captivity, Hagari said, per The Wall Street Journal.
In exchange for releasing the hostages, Israel agreed to a four-day cease-fire in Gaza, pausing its aerial bombardment and ground invasion that began following the October 7 terrorist attacks.
The deal, mediated by Qatar and the US, involved Hamas agreeing to release 50 Israeli women and children hostages in exchange for a pause in the fighting and the release of 150 Palestinian women and children held in Israeli prisons.
The agreement will also allow trucks of humanitarian aid into Gaza after more than six weeks of warfare, which has left swathes of the densely populated strip flattened and caused shortages of fuel, food, and other essentials.
Hamas is expected to release 14 more hostages on Saturday in exchange for 42 Palestinian prisoners.
Before the deal, four hostages had been released and one freed by Israeli forces.
Hamas abducted nearly 240 people during their surprise attacks last month, along with killing around 1,200 people.
The subsequent Israeli siege has killed more than 13,000 people, according to the health ministry.