Emotional Reunion: Five Thai Hostages Return Home After Release from Hamas Captivity

Bangkok (The Uttam Hindu): Five Thai citizens who were held hostage by Hamas returned to their homeland on Sunday. Their families welcomed them with teary eyes at Suvarnabhumi Airport. According to the Bangkok Post report, the five citizens who returned include - Sathian Suwannakham from Nong Bua Lam Phu, Pongsak Thena from Buri Ram, Watchara Srioun from Udon Thani, Surasak Rumanao from Udon Thani and Bannawat Saithao from Nan. All of them were taken hostage by Hamas boys during the October 7 attack.

The five were released on January 30 in the third exchange of hostages and prisoners under the Israel-Hamas deal. Pongsak Thena, 35, cried as he hugged his 65-year-old father Vilas. "I am so happy to be back home again, we are all very emotional to be back in our birthplace ... I don't know what else to say," he said. Among those waiting anxiously was Bannawat's wife, Wichayada Say-yang. She said they have three children who ask them every day when their father is coming home.

Sathian Suwannakham's mother said, "I visited as many temples as I could to plead for his safety. I also consulted astrologers, just to know if he was still alive. Every time I thought of him, I would cry. I was afraid that my son would have already been killed and buried." According to media reports, Hamas had taken a total of 31 Thai citizens captive, of which 23 have already been released. The deaths of two others have been confirmed and the whereabouts of another person are still unknown. Thailand's Foreign Ministry has said that 46 Thai people have been killed in the Hamas-Israel conflict, of which two died in captivity.

The war began after Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, capturing 251 hostages and killing about 1,200 people. At least 48,181 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks. The United Nations says about two-thirds of Gaza's buildings have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks. The release of the Thai hostages comes at a time when the first phase of the January 19 Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement came into effect, under which 21 Israeli hostages and 566 Palestinian prisoners have been released so far.