12 Thai hostages released by Hamas as a truce holds in Gaza
Twelve Thai nationals who had been held hostage in Gaza were released by the Palestinian group Hamas earlier on Friday amid a ceasefire in the embattled region.
The Thai nationals have crossed into Israel through the Rafah border crossing and were on their way to a screening point at Hatzerim Air Base, according to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The name and gender of the released hostages were not yet known.
The ministry said they were notified by the Royal Thai Embassy in Tel Aviv, adding that the 12 Thais would be taken to Shamir Medical Center Hospital (Assaf Harofeh) to be under the care of the medical team.
Thai officials will meet them at the hospital, but they will not allowed to see anyone else for 48 hours.
The ministry said they would try to bring the released hostages back to Thailand as soon as possible, and thanked the Egyptian government, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and all parties involved in the negotiations, and hoped the rest of the hostages would be released safely soon.
