Three hostages held by Hamas – the Palestinian group designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union – have been released and arrived in Israel, authorities reported.
Later on January 19, Israel is expected to release nearly 90 Palestinian prisoners.
This is the first step in the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that went into effect on Sunday.
U.S. President Joe Biden stated that “the guns in Gaza have fallen silent” based on the agreement he envisioned in May of the previous year.
The outgoing president, speaking at an event in South Carolina, also mentioned that humanitarian aid had already begun arriving in Gaza.
According to him, the ceasefire in Gaza has “fundamentally transformed” the Middle East region.
When asked by reporters if he was concerned about Hamas regrouping, the American leader said he was not.
The ceasefire came into effect after Hamas published the names of the three female hostages – in accordance with the ceasefire agreement – who were released on January 19.
An Israeli official confirmed that Romi Gonen, 24, Emily Damari, 28, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, are the first individuals to be released under the ceasefire agreement. Gonen was kidnapped during the Nova music festival, while the other two women were abducted from the settlement of Kfar Aza. Damari is both an Israeli and British citizen.
The failure to deliver the names of the hostages caused the ceasefire to be delayed for more than two hours, with Israel stating earlier that fighting would continue until the names were provided, as stipulated in the agreement made earlier that week. Gaza’s Ministry of Health said that at least eight people were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the morning of January 19.
Hamas had earlier stated that for “technical reasons on the ground” they were unable to provide the names on time. In a statement, the Palestinian radical group said it remained committed to the ceasefire agreement.
Celebrations took place throughout the Palestinian enclave on Sunday, and some Palestinians began returning to their homes, despite the delays in the ceasefire’s implementation, which highlighted the fragility of the agreement.
The United Nations announced that aid trucks had started entering Gaza following the ceasefire’s commencement.
“The first aid trucks began entering Gaza” just minutes after the ceasefire took effect, said UN aid official Jonathan Whittall, who is also the acting head of the UN agency for aid to the Palestinian territories, OCHA.
The ceasefire agreement calls for an end to the 15-month war and the release of nearly 100 hostages who were taken during Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Meanwhile, Israel announced it had successfully retrieved the body of Oron Shaul, a soldier killed during the Israel-Hamas war in 2014. Shaul’s and another soldier, Hadar Goldin’s bodies, had been in Gaza even after the war ended in 2014.
The ceasefire, reached after over a year of intense mediation by the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt, marks the first step in a lengthy and fragile process aimed at ending the 15-month-long war.
In the first 42-day phase of the ceasefire, 33 hostages held in Gaza and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel are expected to be released. The agreement also provides for Israel’s withdrawal to a designated area within Gaza and for many displaced Palestinians to be allowed to return to their homes. Additionally, there are provisions for increasing humanitarian aid to Gaza.
This is the second ceasefire to take effect since the war began in October 2023, as over a year ago the parties paused hostilities for a week, during which several hostages were released.
Negotiations for the second phase, which is expected to be more difficult, are scheduled to begin two weeks later. However, there are many uncertainties regarding this, including whether the war will resume after the first six-week phase and how the remaining hostages will be released.
The war in Gaza has caused numerous casualties and significant material damage. As a result of the Israeli offensive, over 46,000 Palestinians have been killed.
More than 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced. The United Nations has stated that the health system, roads, and vital infrastructure have been severely damaged. Reconstruction – if the ceasefire reaches its final phase – will take several years. The question of how Gaza will be governed after the conflict remains unresolved.
