Three Women Hostages Released

Yesterday, Hamas freed three women held hostage in Gaza for 471 days.

Romi Leshem Gonen (f, 24), whose grandmother was born in Iran, is from Kfar Vradim, but was captured during the Nova music festival massacre near Re’im, where Hamas terrorists killed more than 260 people and abducted about 40 on October 7. In total, the Muslim extremists killed 1,200 people that day and took more than 250 hostages to Gaza.

Doron Steinbrecher (f, 31), an Israeli-Romanian veterinary nurse, and British-Israeli Emily Damari (f, 28) were both taken captive from Kibbutz Afar Aza. Emily’s friends, Gali and Ziv Berman remain in captivity.

Under the ceasefire agreement, Hamas is to release 30 more hostages over the next six weeks, while Israel agreed to release about 1,900 Palestinians prisoners, including 90 women and youth freed in this first phase. The next hostage exchange is scheduled for Saturday, January 25.

Praise God, more than 630 aid trucks have now entered the Gaza Strip, with at least 300 headed to the hungry north. As a part of the ceasefire deal, 600 humanitarian aid trucks are to enter Gaza daily.

Nearly 47,000 Palestinians have died in the war, and 405 Israeli soldiers. Both Israel and Gaza are more than 97% unreached with the gospel of Christ, which means most of those who died on both sides never heard the good news that brings salvation.

To pray for all the hostages by name—both those still held by Hamas and freed hostages recovering from trauma—refer to our Israel-Gaza page:

Pray for Israel, Gaza and Lebanon in These Trying Times

Father God, please have mercy. Please heal the minds and hearts of Romi, Doron, Emily and every hostage who has been abused and make a way for the release of all those still held prisoner in Gaza. Bring down every terrorist and release both Palestinians and Israelis from the oppression of Hamas. Please be intricately involved in the healing of these hostages who are now free, as well as other people who survived the massacres. Bring Christians to each of them to show them Your love and share with them Your good news. Provide Christian counselors, doctors and aid workers to help them to healing. Burn within them a deep desire to know the Truth who sets them free, the Messiah they have looked for, their Savior, Jesus. Give them dreams and visions to point them to You. Place Bibles in their hands. Lift the veil from their eyes and show them who You really are. Be near to the hostages still held in Gaza. Let them feel Your presence and hear Your voice speaking tenderly to them. Tend to all their needs, comfort them with Your love, and show them the way to salvation. Place Your angels around them as a shield, and make those heavenly hosts visible to the terrorists who guard them. Invade the dreams of every terrorist and show them the way to salvation. Make them so repulsed by the atrocities they have committed, appalled by the horrors of religion gone wrong, that they lay aside Islam and seek Jesus. Give hostages favor with their guards and give the guards courage to go against Hamas’ commands and do what is right and good. Single out those You will use to arrange the escape of many hostages, and shield and empower them as they carry out Your plans. Father God, we ask You for miracles. Share with every Palestinian and every Hamas terrorist the good news that brings peace. Draw them up into Your arms to receive Christ as Savior before it’s too late. Awaken Gaza, awaken Israel, awaken Hamas, awaken every hostage, every survivor, every Palestinian, every Jew, every family to Your love. Don’t let even one more lost person die without hearing the good news of Your salvation.

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Mikaela Vincent, and her husband are missionaries who have served nearly three decades in one of the most dangerous countries in the world (See the map at our Persecuted Church page). If you would like to help their ministry at the Prayer Wall and around the world, please consider giving a donation or shopping at Mikaela’s online bookstore.

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