American-Israeli Keith Siegel, 65, is set to be released on Saturday as part of Israel and Hamas’ ceasefire deal.
He is the first of the American citizens taken on Oct. 7, 2023, to be released by the terror organization as part of this ceasefire deal.
Hamas says that the hostages to be released alongside Siegel are French-Israeli citizen Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas, the father of the two youngest hostages, Kfir and Ariel Bibas.
Six months into his time in Hamas captivity, in April 2024, Siegel was seen in a hostage video. In the clip, which confirmed Siegel was alive, he said, ‘It’s very important to me that you know I’m okay.’
In a December 2024 interview with Fox News Digital, Siegel’s wife of more than 40 years, Aviva, said that her husband didn’t ‘look like himself.’
‘I’m just so worried about him, because so [many] days and minutes have passed since that video that we received,’ she said. ‘I just don’t know what kind of Keith that we’re going to get back.’
Keith and Aviva were taken captive during Hamas’ brutal surprise attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. In November 2023, Aviva was released from Hamas captivity as part of a ceasefire and hostage deal early in the war. She has been fighting for her husband’s freedom since she was released.
Aviva’s dream is ‘seeing Keith in front of us and his grandchildren jumping into his arms and we’ll all cry together, and we’ll be the happiest people in Earth.’
Seven American citizens, including Siegel, are still being held hostage in Gaza. Two other Americans are believed to be alive, while the four others are deceased. Hamas is holding the bodies of deceased captives.
Hostage videos, such as the one of Siegel, are not just signs of life, they are part of Hamas’ psychological warfare. Hamas also made hostage videos of American citizens Edan Alexander and Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Alexander is believed to be alive. Goldberg-Polin was murdered by Hamas terrorists as Israel Defense Forces (IDF) closed in for a rescue attempt in the tunnels deep below Gaza’s Rafah.
Released hostages have detailed the harsh conditions in Gaza, including a lack of food and water, and being held underground with little to no sunlight.
In the first phase of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas is expected to release 33 hostages over the course of six weeks. So far, Hamas has released 10 hostages, including five female IDF soldiers who were kidnapped from an observation base in southern Israel. One of the five soldiers, Agam Berger, was released separately from the other four.
The chaotic handling of the transfer of hostages from Hamas to the Red Cross infuriated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He briefly delayed the release of Palestinian prisoners, demanding a guarantee that the remaining hostages would be released under safe conditions. His demand was met a short while later and the Palestinian prisoners were released in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.