Four Israeli women soldiers freed from captivity in Gaza reached Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, central Israel, on Saturday accompanied by their parents aboard a military helicopter, AFP journalists reported.
The Israeli health ministry later confirmed that they had arrived at the hospital. It said staff there were ready to “provide comprehensive medical care, including psychological support” for the women who had spent 477 days in captivity.
The Israeli military said earlier in a statement that “Daniella Gilboa, Liri Albag, Naama Levy and Karina Ariev, together with their parents, just boarded an Israeli air force helicopter to make their way to the hospital, where they will be reunited with the rest of their families and receive medical treatment”.
The four women were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Gaza City on Saturday morning, before being passed to the Israeli military who transported them out of the Palestinian territory.
They were then reunited with their parents at a military base on the border with Gaza before boarding the helicopter.
Footage released by the military showed the families overcome with joy at being back together.
Albag and her parents were seen screaming with happiness and laughing while her father lifted her off the ground in a bear hug.
Speaking directly to the camera she said: “I love you, all the citizens of the State of Israel, who supported our families and embraced them, and all the (Israeli) soldiers who did everything for us. Thank you very much, I love you all,” before making a heart symbol with her hands.
All four of the families were seen sharing tender moments together, crying, hugging and kissing.
Outside the hospital in Petah Tikva, around 10 kilometres (seven miles) east of Tel Aviv, crowds waving Israeli flags gathered to greet the arriving helicopters.
As they had done six days before during the first hostage release of this ceasefire, officials deployed a covered walkway to preserve the privacy of the hostages.
Earlier in the day, the hostages were paraded on a stage in central Gaza City by Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters before being handed over to the Red Cross.
Elroy Guillemette
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