BANGKOK (AP) — Five Thai workers released after being held hostage for over a year in Gaza arrived in Bangkok on Sunday.
Associated PressA Thai hostage who was freed from Hamas, Pongsak Thaenna, center, hugs a relative upon arrival at Suvarnabhumi International Airport, in Samut Prakarn Province, Thailand, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025. BANGKOK — Five Thai workers released after being held hostage for over a year in Gaza arrived in Bangkok on Sunday.
"We are all very grateful and very happy that we get to return to our homeland. We all would really like to thank you. I don't know what else to say," Pongsak told a news conference at the airport. They were the second batch of Thai hostages released since the war broke out. During an earlier ceasefire in November 2023, 23 Thai nationals were released in a deal negotiated between Thailand and Hamas, with assistance from Qatar and Iran.
A total of 46 Thais had been killed during the conflict, including two Thai citizens who were killed during the attack and their bodies taken into Gaza, according to Thailand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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