In the impoverished villages of Isaan, as Thailand’s northeast is known, families have become used to a vigil from half a world away.
On Thursday, five families hoped that their loved ones were finally being released from Gaza, after 15 months as hostages in a conflict whose contours they do not fully understand. The Thai foreign ministry has said that five Thai nationals will be among those released on Thursday.
“Is there any news yet?” asked Wiwwaeo Sriaoun, the mother of Watchara Sriaoun, one of the remaining Thai hostages. “We are happy but also anxious waiting for the names to come out.”
Neither Israel nor Hamas have named the Thai hostages due to be released on Thursday.
Like the other 30,000 Thai farmworkers laboring in Israel before the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, Mr. Watchara had grown accustomed to nurturing produce in what sometimes turned into a battle zone, his mother said.
At least 39 Thai agricultural workers were killed in the Oct. 7 attacks, and at least 31 were taken hostage, according to the Thai foreign ministry. Of the 31 hostages, at least two died in captivity, Thai officials said. During a cease-fire in November 2023, 23 Thai hostages were released.
Vilas Thanna, the father of Pongsak Thanna, another Thai hostage, said he hoped that his son, a fruit tender, might be one of the five to be released on Thursday. The family, including Mr. Pongsak’s 14-year-old daughter and many other relatives, had gathered in an excited throng at his home in Buriram, in Isaan.
“I am very super duper happy, so excited,” Mr. Vilas said. “I couldn’t sleep since last night.”
The fate of the sixth Thai hostage believed to be in Gaza is unclear. While Thai government officials have said he is alive, Thai and Israeli workers charged with taking care of the released hostages say they have been told he has died.
Despite the dangers, Thai farmhands have continued to tend fields in Israel. Among them are some who suffered through the Hamas-led killing spree 15 months ago.
In October, four Thais were killed by Hezbollah rockets in northern Israel. The same month, another Thai was killed near the Israel-Lebanon border when unexploded ordnance detonated in an orchard.
