Four young women soldiers, abducted by Palestinian militants on October 7, 2023 while serving near the Gaza border, are set to be released on Saturday, according to a list provided by Hamas as part of its ceasefire agreement with Israel.
Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa and Naama Levy were captured together while deployed in a surveillance unit at the Nahal Oz military base, close to the Gaza border.
Their abduction was filmed by the militants.
Three other women soldiers were taken hostage with them: Agam Berger, who is still held in Gaza and presumed alive; Noa Marciano, whose body has since been repatriated to Israel; and Ori Megidish, who was freed alive by the Israeli military in late October 2023.
Liri Albag was doing her military service on the border with the Gaza Strip when she was abducted from the Nahal Oz base.
According to press reports, hostages who were released earlier told her parents that Albag was forced by her captors to cook, clean and babysit.
The Jerusalem Post reported in July that she had passed messages to her family via hostages who had been released, telling her sister Shai not to cancel her traditional post-army trip and most of all not to touch her favourite shoes.
In January, she appeared in a video of around three and a half minutes released by Hamas.
“She loves travelling, singing, photography and cooking,” Israeli campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.
Her parents Shira and Eli Albag have campaigned for the hostages’ release.
Karina Ariev was abducted while doing her military service at the border with Gaza.
A video of her capture showed her being wounded. She was shown in January 2024 in a new video released by Hamas on Telegram, alongside hostage Daniella Gilboa. She turned 20 in captivity.
“She dreams of becoming a psychologist and is known for being compassionate and for bringing people together,” the Hostage and Missing Families Forum said.
Daniella Gilboa from Petah Tikva was abducted while doing her military service along the border with Gaza.
She was identified as a hostage by the clothes she was wearing in videos she sent to her boyfriend on the morning of the attack.
Gilboa, who turned 20 in captivity, was shown, alongside hostage Karina Ariev, in January 2024 in a video published by Hamas on the social network Telegram.
Gilboa “is a passionate musician who studies piano and singing, aspiring to pursue a professional career in music,” the forum said.
Naama Levy, now 20, was abducted while doing her military service along the border with Gaza.
In a video of her capture released by Hamas, she is shown being escorted to a vehicle wearing trousers which appeared to be covered with blood. In other images, the granddaughter of survivors of the Nazi death camps appears with a swollen face.
The second child of four, she grew up in India where she studied at a US international school. As a child, she took part in the Hands of Peace programme, which promotes peace between young Israelis and Palestinians.
She is a keen triathlete.
“Family and friends describe her as gentle and quiet, yet full of light, joy, strength and determination,” the forum said.
