The Times of Israel is liveblogging Friday’s events as they happen.
Parents of freed IDF soldier Agam Berger to Trump: ‘Thank you for making us all do the right thing’ Meirav Berger, mother of released hostage Agam Berger, offers a heartfelt, spiritual message of thanks for the return of her daughter, in a public statement at Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva. “Thank you to the creator of the world, to the nation of Israel and the Jewish world, to those who stood with us and wrapped us in endless love and overturned every rock to bring our Agam home to us,” she says. Her husband, Agam’s father, Shlomi Berger, thanks US President Donald Trump in English: “Thank you, thank you for your care and for making us all do the right thing,” he says. “We will never forget your help, your generosity and your leadership, God bless the United States of America.” Meirav also thanks the IDF soldiers, the country’s decision-makers, the family’s community in Holon, as well as their friends and family. “And Agam, our superhero, what luck that you are mine,” says the released soldier’s mother. “With God’s help, take all that is offered to you. No one will ever be able to say no to you.” Berger was freed from Gaza yesterday along with two other Israeli hostages and five Thai nations, 482 days after they were kidnapped during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 massacre. Another three Israeli hostages are slated for release tomorrow, under an ongoing deal with the terror group.
Egyptians gather at Rafah Border Crossing to protest Trump’s proposal to relocate Gazans Several hundred Egyptians gather in front of the Rafah Border Crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip to protest US President Donald Trump’s controversial proposal that large numbers of Gazans take refuge in Egypt and Jordan. The protesters wave Palestinian flags and hold photos of Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah el-Sissi, who has rejected Trump’s suggestion, along with signs saying, “We support you.” The protest comes as the Gaza-Egypt crossing is set to reopen for Palestinian civilians under a hostage-ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas that came into effect last week. The EU said earlier today that it has restarted its civilian mission to monitor the crossing.
Freed IDF soldier Liri Albag: ‘I was finally able to reunite with my family… but our struggle is not over’ Former hostage soldier Liri Albag, who was freed from Hamas captivity last week, calls for the release of the remaining abductees held by terror groups in Gaza since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, massacre. “I was finally able to reunite with my family… but our struggle is not over and I will not stop fighting until everyone is home,” she writes in a post on Instagram. “I want us to continue to stay united because together nothing can break us. Our unity and hope scare our enemies, amazes our loved ones and comforts those among us. I hope everyone will see the light.” Albag was released on Saturday along with three other surveillance soldiers after 477 days in captivity, under a deal with the Hamas terror group that came into effect last week. During the first phase of the accord, Hamas is set to free 33 hostages in exchange for Israel’s releasing up to 1,904 Palestinian security prisoners and detainees. Ten hostages have been released from captivity so far — five soldiers and five civilians — in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including dozens serving life sentences.
WATCH: Son of released hostage Gadi Mozes asks dad to shave his beard, after letting it grow for 482 days After being released from Hamas captivity in Gaza yesterday, former hostage Gadi Mozes shaves the bushy beard of his son, Yair Mozes, who vowed not to shave until his father returned home. In the video taken at Rabin Medical Center, where Mozes and most of the other released hostages are recuperating, 80-year-old Mozes, who was taken captive from Kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, is seen steadily shaving his son’s cheeks and then his grandson’s head. In the background, a family member calls out the shehecheyanu blessing for having finally reached the moment when Mozes is safely home. “It’s like shearing a sheep,” says someone else. Gadi Mozes shaves the beard of his son, Yair Mozes, and his grandson, Erez, after being freed from Hamas captivity on January 30, 2025. (Hostages Forum)
The European Union has restarted its civilian mission to monitor the Rafah Border Crossing between Gaza and Egypt, according to the bloc’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. Kallas announced on Monday that there was broad agreement among member states’ foreign ministers that the EU Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) could play a “decisive role” in supporting the hostage-ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that came into effect last week. “The EU’s civilian border mission deploys today to the Rafah Crossing at the request of the Palestinians and the Israelis. It will support Palestinian border personnel and allow the transfer of individuals out of Gaza, including those who need medical care,” she posts on X. Photos posted to social media show EU staff and vehicles at the Rafah crossing. Both Palestinian Authority and Hamas officials say the crossing will now be run by members of the PA and European monitors. The Palestinian officials say 50 injured fighters and 50 wounded civilians, along with individuals escorting them, will be permitted to pass through the crossing, along with another 100 people, most likely students, who will be allowed through on humanitarian grounds. There is no official comment from Israel on the reopening of the crossing, which comes under a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group.
‘Dad’s coming! Dad’s on the list’: Freed hostage reacts to news her husband, Keith Siegel, will be freed tomorrow Shir Siegel, whose father Keith Siegel was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, and is still held in Gaza, posts footage of the moment her mother finds out he is slated for release tomorrow. “Dad’s coming! Shirkush! Dad’s coming. Dad’s on the list,” cries Aviva Siegel, who was also kidnapped from her home on Kibbutz Kfar Aza in the Hamas onslaught and released in a week-long truce in November 2023. Siegel, 65, a dual Israeli-US citizen originally hailing from North Carolina, is believed to be in poor health. Israeli officials confirmed a short while ago that he will be released from Gaza tomorrow along with Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas, under the first phase of an ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal. Ten Israeli hostages have been released since the accord came into effect last week.
Two IDF reservists from Haifa, one from Iron Dome unit, charged with spying for Iran The State Prosecutor’s Office files indictments at a Haifa court against two IDF reservists for alleged espionage on behalf of Iran in return for financial compensation, according to a statement. The defendants, Yuri Eliasfov and Georgi Andreyev, both aged 21 and both residents of the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Yam, are charged with serious offenses including contact with a foreign agent, transferring classified information, and aiding the enemy during wartime. The police and Shin Bet security service announced their arrests early this week. The two were in contact with an Iranian agent identified as “Boaz” and carried out actions intended to harm state security, according to the charge sheet. Prosecutors say the two men have a long-standing friendship. Eliasfov, who served in the military’s Iron Dome unit, is accused of passing along highly sensitive material about the missile defense technology to his Iranian handler, including photos and video of the radar screen. The indictment accuses him of offering to sell video footage of the missile defense system to “Boaz” for $10,000, including an $800 down payment. Andreyev served in the Air Force’s operational headquarters, according to the charge sheet. The two are accused of spray-painting pro-Iranian graffiti and hanging banners in Tel Aviv carrying the slogan “Children of Ruhollah,” referring to Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran’s first supreme leader following the Islamic Revolution.
Hostages slated to be freed from Gaza tomorrow are Ofer Calderon, Keith Siegel and Yarden Bibas — officials The three Israeli hostages slated to be freed from Gaza tomorrow are Ofer Calderon, Keith Siegel and Yarden Bibas, Israeli officials say. Siegel, 65, a US citizen originally from North Carolina, was taken captive with his wife Aviva from Kibbutz Kfar Aza. She was freed in November 2023. Calderon, 54, and his two of his children, Erez and Sahar, were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, and they were both freed during the last ceasefire. Bibas, 35, was kidnapped separately from his wife and children, Shiri, Ariel and Kfir, who were all taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Hamas has claimed that Shiri and the two boys have been killed in captivity. Israel has not officially confirmed their deaths, but has expressed “grave concern” for their fate. Yarden was wounded during his kidnapping. Israeli officials say that the families have been notified and that Israel accepts the Hamas list.