On Sunday, thirteen Israelis and four Thai nationals released from Hamas captivity arrived in Israel. After leaving Gaza, TV footage showed hostages on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing.
Late on Saturday, Hamas handed over the captives to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Of the 13 Israelis released, six were women, and seven were kids and teenagers.
Among the Palestinian prisoners released from two Israeli prisons, 33 were minors, and six were women, the Palestinian news agency WAFA said. Some of those freed arrived at Al-Bireh Municipality Square in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Over four days, 50 Israeli hostages are to be exchanged for 150 Palestinian prisoners.
On Friday, in Gaza, a four-day cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war began. It was a part of an agreement that Qatar helped broker. 24 hostages were freed. These include 10 Thai citizens, one Filipino citizen, and 13 Israeli citizens. Later in the day, Israel released 39 Palestinian prisoners.
As the truce began, additional aid started flowing into Gaza. In Gaza, 200 trucks of aid would enter daily. “When the truce starts, 130,000 litres of diesel and four trucks of gas will be delivered every day to Gaza,” Egypt had said.
On its Telegram channel, Hamas confirmed that all hostilities from its forces would stop. The military of Israel said its troops would stay behind a ceasefire line inside Gaza.
Both sides have made it clear that the pause would be temporary before the battle starts again.