The long-awaited ceasefire in Gaza came into effect Sunday morning, after a delay of nearly three hours from the expected time.
BBC News reports that Gazans are beginning to return to their homes, after Hamas fulfilled the condition of ceasefire, namely releasing the names of the first three hostages to be freed.
The ceasefire was expected to take effect at 6.30am GMT, but was delayed at the last minute after the expected list of hostages did not arrive. Hamas explained this was down to “technical field reasons.”
Israel continued to strike Gaza during those three hours of delay. The Hamas-run civil defence agency told the BBC that 19 people were killed in that time.
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The three hostages to be released by Hamas have been named as: Doron Steinbrecher, Emily Damari and Romi Gonen.
This ceasefire represents the biggest hope for an end to the conflict, triggered on October 7 2023 by Hamas’ attack on Israel, in which approximately 1,200 people were killed and 251 Israeli citizens taken hostage.
It is estimated that, since that time, more than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed.
Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the deal mediated by the US and Qatar, which requires Israel to release Palestinian prisoners being held in its jails.
He has faced opposition to the deal from within his own cabinet. National security minister Itamar Ben Gvir and two other senior government figures resigned in protest, leaving the embattled prime minister with a very slim majority in power. Ben Gvir wrote in his letter of resignation that the ceasefire agreement represented “a victory for terrorism.”
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