This is from the message of the family of Yarden Bibas, 35, who returned home from Hamas captivity on Saturday morning.
“Yarden has returned to an unbearable reality.” When he was taken hostage on October 7, he was separated from his wife, Shiri and their two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, now 5 and 2 years old respectively, who were all taken captive. At one point a video was released by Hamas in which they showed a weeping Yarden who had been told by the terrorists that his family was dead. But this cruel propaganda video was proof of nothing.
Far more unsettling was the fact that in an earlier release of hostages, in November 2023, when all children with their mothers were supposed to be released, Shiri and her boys were not among them; nor were they released in the first stage of the current deal.
There is then, tragically, reason to believe that they are not alive. But we cannot know with certainty, and so Yarden returns clinging to the slight possibility that they might yet come home alive.

Kfir was 10 months old when taken captive. What sort of subhuman monsters take babies into captivity?
Israel is demanding, but has not received, answers.
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This this what the family has said now (emphasis added):
“Yarden is home. A quarter of our heart has returned to us after 15 long months.
“There are no words to describe the relief of holding Yarden in our hands, embracing him, and hearing his voice. Yarden has returned home, but the home remains incomplete. Yarden is a father who left his safe room to protect his family, bravely survived captivity, and returned to an unbearable reality.
“At this time, we ask: Protect Yarden, protect his soul. Please respect his privacy and give him the space he needs so that his body and soul can begin to recover. Thank you to our beautiful people. Thank you to our soldiers. Thank you and we’re sorry to all those who sacrificed their lives so this day could come.”
Yarden was wounded in the process of trying to protect his family and dragged away separate from them into captivity.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/403224
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According to a report in Times of Israel, Yarden said Hamas taunted him about Shiri and the kids. But he clings to hope. As one relative put it, “The emotions are mixed, and we are facing very complex days.”
Yarden, who is now in Sheba Medical Center, will be provided not only with all necessary medical care, but with extensive psychological support.
When he came out of Gaza, he was brought first to a military facility near Re’im, where he reunited with his father and sister.

See video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mQO_NkrM58
The three were then brought by helicopter to Sheba, where Yarden reunited with his mother.
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Bibas, 35, was brought out from Khan Younis along with French-Israeli hostage Ofer Calderon, 54. They were put through the same nonsensical charade as the hostages released on Thursday: they were required to go up on a stage and given “release certificates,” which detailed dates of abduction and release. Bibas, looking very somber and somewhat confused:

At Sheba Medical Center Calderon reunited with his four kids, two of whom had been taken captive with him but were released in November 2023:

His touching reunion with his partner, Ella Golan:
https://x.com/AvivaKlompas/status/1885661194809131233
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The third hostage released on Saturday was Keith Siegel, 65, who has dual American and Israeli citizenship. Appearing thin and weak, he was held on each side by terrorists as he went through the same rigamarole on stage, but in his case via the Gaza port.

He was given not one, but two, “goody bags.” His wife Aviva had been taken captive with him but was released in November 2023. One of the bags was for her. I want to ask, Does Hamas imagine this nonsense impresses anyone or mitigates their menace?
But that is simply my gut response (and perhaps yours as well). But there is another explanation, of course: Hamas is demonstrating power in the way it choreographs these events. Seth Frantzman explains:
It has even “held the events in different areas, such as Jabalya and Khan Yunis, to demonstrate its increasing control as it returns to areas in the Gaza Strip…
“What is clear is that Hamas is using the period of the first phase of the ceasefire, around 40 days, to rebuild itself…The overall goal for Hamas is to present itself as in control and able to project power again.”
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-840200
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Here we see Aviva, presumed recipient of that second goody bag – who had been agonized by the separation – reuniting with Keith, her husband of 44 years. She says she is the happiest woman in the world and that from the moment he is home, he will be king.

Keith’s 97-year-old mother had died while he was in captivity.
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In all instances, Hamas handed the hostages over to Red Cross officials who then brought them to the IDF. The Red Cross participated in the charade, with its representative sitting on the stage and signing papers acknowledging receipt of the hostages.
It is ironic then, although I suppose not surprising, that after participating in the Hamas show for public consumption, the Red Cross – which also participated in the transfer of terrorist prisoners being released in exchange for the three hostages – objected to the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) photographing those terrorists as they were being released.
The IPS said these photographs were necessary to document their condition on release in order to prevent false claims from being registered regarding the condition of the released terrorists or the manner of their release. The Red Cross continued to object.
The Red Cross has not once visited an Israeli hostage held by Hamas or PIJ.
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The number of security prisoners released on Saturday was 183; 150 sent to Gaza, 32 released to Judea & Samaria, and one, an Egyptian national, sent to Egypt. Among the 18 who were serving life sentences was Shadi Amouri, of Fatah, who was convicted of involvement in a June 2002 suicide bombing on a bus near Megiddo in northern Israel which killed 17 Israelis, including 13 IDF soldiers, and injured over 40; he had been sentenced to 17 life terms.
When one hears a sentence of multiple life terms, the immediate thought is that well, he’ll never get out on parole. But, infuriatingly, sometimes they get out via deals such as the current one.
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After the outrage of the menacing crowd that accompanied the cars carrying hostages to their release on Thursday, the situation was far quieter this time around. Israel had registered a vigorous protest with the deal negotiators (Qatar and Egypt) that obviously registered. What we can conclude is that this was not an out-of-control crowd. Hamas is in charge.
That crowd with its chilling behavior, it should be noted, was not comprised primarily of Hamas members: these were “ordinary” Gaza citizens. This tells us a good deal, about their appearance and well as their behavior. They certainly did not appear underfed, and many managed to have working cellphones in hand.
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And where are we headed now in Gaza?
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided not to send Israel’s negotiations team to Qatar at this stage for talks about the second phase of the ongoing ceasefire and hostage deal that are meant to kick off on Monday, the Walla news outlet reports, citing an unnamed senior Israel source…
“According to the deal’s terms, negotiations on the second phase must start on Monday, the 16th day of the first phase [today]. The second stage is expected to include the return of all the remaining living hostages held by terrorists in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for a yet-to-be-determined number of Palestinian security prisoners and a full Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.
“Reports are increasingly indicating Netanyahu is seriously entertaining the possibility of resuming the war after the first phase, rather than continuing on to the second phase.” (Emphasis added)
I would hope so, pray so. We must not withdraw from Gaza; it is imperative that we continue our push to take out Hamas. There will be a good deal of backlash at this decision on the part of those who still have relatives who are hostages in Gaza. It’s all terribly painful and the decisions are not simple – but the security of the entire nation must come first. Netanyahu’s goal is to bring out the hostages as Hamas is defeated.
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Netanyahu rebuffed attempts by Mid-East Envoy Steve Witkoff to officially begin negotiations on the second stage today, declining to send our delegation to talks in Doha. He is reportedly seeking to appoint Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close confidant, as the head of the negotiations team in place of the head of Mossad David Barnea, as the key issues are political.
Negotiations will be done in Washington, Netanyahu reportedly said, and will come after he has had an opportunity to speak with President Trump on Tuesday. A bit of confusion on this issue – as there are reports indicating that he agreed to start talking about the second stage with Witkoff on Monday. Presumably this is informal, as our delegation will not yet be in place.
The prime minister left for the US this morning.

What will follow is still very much up in the air, but it would be difficult to overemphasize the importance of this meeting. Netanyahu is the first foreign head Trump will be meeting, and he has emphasized the importance of his close relationship with the president.
“In this meeting we’ll deal with important issues, critical issues facing Israel and our region: Victory over Hamas, achieving the release of all our hostages and dealing with the Iranian terror axis in all its components – an axis that threatens the peace of Israel, the Middle East and the entire world.” He speaks of achieving “a remarkable era of peace through strength.” (Emphasis added) Strength is the keyword here.
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I ask for prayers for Israel’s wellbeing – for the wisdom and strength of our leaders and the safety of all Am Yisrael.
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©Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by independent journalist Arlene Kushner. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.