November 28, 2023 Israel-Hamas war

Ahead of the fifth day of an Israel-Hamas truce, Israel has freed 150 Palestinian detainees, and Hamas has released 69 hostages.

Of all the Palestinian prisoners released so far, 98 were detained without charge. 119 of the freed prisoners were children and the remaining 31 were women.

According to combined information released by the Palestinian Prisoners Club and the Israeli prison authorities, 33 Palestinian prisoners were in group released Monday, which included 30 children who were 18 years old or younger. Out of the 30 teenagers, 29 are boys and one is a 15-year-old girl.

Some context: Israel often places Palestinians under administrative detention, a widely criticized practice in which a detainee is unaware of any charges against them, and their case is not subject to any legal process.

At the start of October, more than 1,200 Palestinians were being held in administrative detention, the highest figure in more than three decades, according to Israeli and Palestinian human rights groups.

Arrests have increased dramatically since Hamas’ deadly attacks on October 7. Up to 2,070 arrests were documented in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem in that month alone, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, a non-governmental organization dedicated to addressing the concerns of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons. That figure includes 145 children and 55 women

Throughout the 50 days Noam and Alma Or were held captive in Gaza, one thought kept the siblings going: reuniting with their mother, who they’d been separated from on October 7 during Hamas’ brutal attacks on their community.

But when Noam, 17, and Alma, 13, were released together on Saturday, “this dream had been shattered by the fact that she was murdered,” said the siblings’ maternal uncle Ahal Besorai.

“My sister, their mom, was murdered on October 7. The children did not know that,” he said, speaking to CNN from the Philippines. “We thought they were together when they were kidnapped, but they were separated from the outset.”

“When they first crossed the border and reunited with their grandmother and older brother, the first news that they had to confront was the fact that their mom is no longer alive. And that was a terribly emotional and traumatic moment for them,” Besorai added.

The siblings’ father Dror remains missing, believed captive in Gaza.

Some context: Hamas is believed to have held more than 200 hostages in Gaza prior to the releases negotiated with Israel. Under the breakthrough truce agreement, groups of Israeli citizens and other nationals have been freed every day since last Friday, while Israel has released Palestinian women and children detainees from its prisons, many of whom have never been charged or sentenced.

The initial four-day truce was extended by an additional two days on Monday, as stories began to trickle out from the families of freed hostages, giving the first insights into what life had been like in captivity.

Read more about the Or family's ordeal here.

Israel and Hamas have agreed to a two-day extension of a truce in the Gaza Strip. Under the agreement, Hamas will release a further 10 hostages each day over the next two days, according to a senior Israel official.

The extension was set to go into effect when the fourth groups of hostages were released on Monday, according to Mark Regev, a senior adviser to Israel's prime minister.

US President Joe Biden praised the continued pause in fighting and said in a statement, "We will not stop until all of the hostages held by Hamas terrorists are released."

However, not all of the roughly 240 people seized during the October 7 terror attack on Israel are, or were, being held by Hamas, the militant group that launched the assault. CNN has previously reported that between 40 and 50 hostages were held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad or other militant groups. The truce agreement requires Hamas — and not another group — to hand over hostages.

Here's what else you should know:

Liat Beinin, an Israeli American woman being held hostage in Gaza, was expected to be among the 50 hostages Hamas released over the course of the initial four-day truce, according to the White House. But as of Monday, she remains in captivity.

"Obviously, I’m disappointed but we remain optimistic and hopeful that her release will come in the next two days," Yehuda Beinin, her father, told CNN's Erin Burnett Monday.

Under the extended truce, Hamas will release 10 hostages each day, according to an Israeli senior adviser. That leaves open the possibility that two American women, including Liat Beinin, could be released on Tuesday or Wednesday. 

“We have no choice but to remain — other than to remain hopeful," Yehuda said. He said earlier in the interview that their family is "also concerned about Aviv, Liat Beinin’s husband.” 

“We know that Aviv was wounded on the day of the attack and other than that, we have no knowledge, whatsoever, of Aviv, where he’s being held or who’s holding him, actually,” Yehuda Beinin said. "Obviously this lack of information and lack of definitive news is very concerning."

Beinin said he and his wife suspect other groups in Gaza that Hamas does not fully control may be holding his daughter or her husband. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to NATO headquarters this week will include additional stops in the Middle East. 

"After Brussels, Secretary Blinken will travel this week to Skopje, Israel, the West Bank, and Dubai," a senior State Department official said.

During those meetings, Blinken will "stress the need to sustain the increased flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, secure the release of all hostages and improve protections for civilians in Gaza," the official said.

Blinken will also talk with leaders about "the future of Gaza and the need to establish an independent Palestinian state," the official said, adding that Blinken will aim to "continue efforts to prevent the conflict from spreading."

A total of 33 Palestinians were released from several Israeli prisons Monday, the Israeli prison service said. 

They were released from the prisons in Damon, Megiddo, Ofer, Ktzi’ot, Ramon and Nafha, according to the service.

It followed the release of 11 more hostages by Hamas. 

With Monday's releases, Hamas has so far released 69 hostages, primarily women and children. Israel has freed 150 Palestinians from prison, mainly women and minors, many of whom were detained but never charged.

The Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum in Israel released the names and photos of the 11 hostages freed by Hamas on Monday.

While the Israel Defense Forces says all 11 people released were Israelis, it's not clear if some of them hold dual citizenship.

All are residents of kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel, an official statement from the kibbutz said.

The hostages released have been identified as:

Tamar Michaelis contributed reporting to this post.