Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, handed over two out of three Israeli hostages in Khan Younis in southern Gaza to the International Committee of the Red Cross on Saturday as part of the ongoing prisoner exchange deal.
The hostages handed over so far are Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas while Keith Samuel Siegel is set for release later on Saturday.
The Israeli army confirmed in a statement that two Israeli hostages were on their way to Israel.
According to an Anadolu correspondent, the transfer took place amid significant presence of Palestinians.
Members of Al-Qassam Brigades were also heavily deployed in the area to oversee the transfer, the correspondent added.
The Red Cross vehicles, which arrived in Khan Younis earlier in the day facilitated the handover as per the terms agreed for today's exchange.
This marks the latest stage in the multi-phase swap deal between Hamas and Israel which has seen the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages.
The exchange process has been taking place under international mediation efforts.
