PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Over a four-day period beginning Friday, a day later than originally planned, 50 hostages being held by Hamas will be exchanged for 150 Palestinian prisoners. An Ardmore family hopes that their 84-year-old grandmother will be among those set free.
For nearly two months now, Amichai Shdaimah has experienced every emotion imaginable, “going between hope and sadness or despair.”
He waits for news each day about his step mother Ditza Heiman, known as Savta Ditza to his children, who was kidnapped by Hamas from her home in Nir Oz, a kibbutz in southern Israel, in October.
He says the recent news about release of hostages is a glimmer of hope.
“You know, 50 is better than zero. We definitely hope she'll be released. If she doesn't, we'll be very disappointed and sad, jealous.”
Shdaimah says he can’t imagine the conditions she is under, as she has trouble with mobility and has relied on a golf cart to get around her kibbutz.
Itay Milner, a spokesperson for the Israeli consulate, says the hostages will be released gradually, about 12 per day.
About 240 hostages are currently being held by Hamas.
In October, four hostages were released — an American woman and her teenage daughter and two older Israeli women. Earlier this month, Israeli ground forces pushed deeper into Gaza and freed a soldier.