Nineteen-year-old Lily Albag burst into her parents’ arms, eliciting screams of joy.

“My beauty. You are a hero. You are home. That’s it,” her mother said as the three laughed and cried together.

The Israeli military filmed the moment, the first time the family had met in more than 15 months.

Lily was one of the first Israelis to be taken hostage in a Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, when the Gaza border military base where she was based was captured.

she Four female soldiers to return to Israel Saturday as part of the first phase of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. In return, 200 Palestinian prisoners were released.

Shortly after her return, her family said in a statement: “After 477 long and excruciatingly heartbreaking days of waiting, we feel relieved and happy.”

Crowds gathered in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square on Saturday morning, watching live news from Gaza on big screens, as they waited for the group to be brought back to Israel.

Freed along with Liri were 20-year-old soldiers Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa and Naama Levy.

Cheers erupted as the women, accompanied by masked gunmen from Hamas’s Qassam Brigades, appeared in Gaza City’s Palestine Square for the staged handover. They held hands and waved before being taken away in a Red Cross vehicle.

“It’s amazing. They’re amazing. Do you see them standing and smiling?” said a woman watching the livestream with the crowd in Tel Aviv.

One man in the watching crowd in Gaza told the BBC that Hamas was repatriating the hostages in an “honorable manner” and declared the moment a victory for the group.

The women were then transferred to the Israeli military and later taken to hospital by helicopter.

At a news conference, Dr. Lena Koren Feldman, director of Bellinson Hospital, called the freed hostages “in stable condition” but said they would continue to undergo “comprehensive medical and emotional evaluations.”

They are the second batch of hostages to be released ceasefire agreementIt aims to permanently end the war that began a week ago after months of negotiations.

The four women were taken hostage on October 7 at the Nahar Oz military base, about one kilometer from the Gaza border fence.

they are an unarmed all-female observer unitknown as “tatzpitaniyot” in Hebrew, is tasked with studying live surveillance footage captured by cameras on the high-tech fence and looking for any signs of suspiciousness.

Several conscripts in the unit and family members of the victims said they had been warning for months before Oct. 7 that an attack was coming.

One person told the BBC it was clear there was a “balloon about to explode”.

The Israeli military has previously said that it is “conducting a thorough investigation into the events that occurred on October 7 and the circumstances that preceded it.”

One woman from the unit, Agam Berger, remains in Gaza. In a statement on Saturday, her family said they were “overjoyed and touched” by the return of the other four, while they continued to “eagerly wait to embrace Forrest in the week ahead, God willing”.

Another woman who served in the unit with them but was not on duty on October 7 told the BBC: “I’ve been very emotional… it feels like the sisters are coming home.”

“God willing, we’ll all sit together and talk, but of course there’s no pressure. They have to heal first.”

It is a bittersweet moment for the families of the observers killed on October 7.

“This is a very emotional day for us,” said Elad Levy, whose niece Roni served with the four women and was killed in the attack.

“We are happy to see Karina, Daniela, Leri and Naama return to their families. At the same time, we remember that there are still hostages in Gaza. For us, we remember Ronnie who will never come home. “”

Israel had expected female civilian hostage Abel Yehud to be included in Saturday’s release and accused Hamas of violating the terms of the ceasefire by prioritizing female civilians. Hamas said Ms Yehud would be released by the end of next week.

Another female civilian who has not yet been released is Shiri Bibas, who was held hostage along with her husband and two young children, Ariel and Kfir.