The Israeli prime minister’s office confirmed that it had received the list of hostages the Palestinian armed group Hamas will be releasing on Saturday under the ceasefire deal with Israel and the country in return will release another batch of Palestinian prisoners.

They are Israelis Ofer Kalderon, 53, and Yarden Bibas, 34, and American-Israeli Keith Siegel, 65.

Mr Bibas is the father of Kfir, the youngest hostage who was 10 months old when he was kidnapped by Hamas. His wife Shiri and their other son Ariel, four, were also captured.

It will mark the fourth such exchange of hostages for prisoners since the ceasefire came into effect on 19 January.

Ofer Kalderon and Yarden Bibas were taken by Hamas from Nir Oz, while Keith Siegel was taken from Kfar Aza.

Mr Bibas’ wife Shiri, and their two children, Ariel, now five, and Kfir, now two, were also taken captive. Their fate is unknown.

Their release will bring the number of hostages freed under the ceasefire deal so far to 18.

Four hundred Palestinian prisoners – ranging from those serving long sentences for bombings and other attacks to teenagers held without charge – have so far been freed in exchange.

Most have returned to the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, while many of the most serious offenders have been deported.

251 hostages were taken by Hamas when it attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people.

The attack triggered a war which has devastated Gaza. Israel’s 15-month military offensive killed 47,460 Palestinians in the territory, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.