After a nearly three-hour delay, the first part of the long-awaited ceasefire agreement in Gaza has begun, with Hamas scheduled to free three Israeli detainees later on Sunday.
Hamas claimed “technical field reasons” for the delay in releasing the names.In a statement, it affirmed its commitment to the ceasefire agreement that it made public last week.
After the first deadline, the Israeli military reportedly hit what it called “terror targets” in Gaza, killing 19 Palestinians.
The truce finally came into effect at 11:15 after Israel received the names of the hostages. British-Israeli and Romanian-Israeli dual nationals were among them, according to mediator Qatar.
The United States, Qatar, and Egypt mediated the ceasefire, the second truce in the deadly conflict, after months of indirect negotiations between the warring parties.
Israel restates that a ceasefire requires the return of all hostages.
After a historic cross-border raid on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken captive, the Israeli military launched a mission to destroy Hamas, a group that Israel, the US, and other countries classify as a terrorist organization.
“Both Trump and Biden have given full backing to Israel’s right to return to the fighting if it reaches the conclusion that the second stage of negotiations is ineffectual,” Israeli government spokesman David Mencer told reporters.
In a different statement, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz reaffirmed that Israel will not end the conflict until all people have returned home.
“We will take care to maintain the buffer zones and respond forcefully to any violation and threat,” he continued. In the first phase, Israeli troops are leaving Gaza for buffer zones.
After a ceasefire took effect on Sunday, residents of Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, returned to find extensive damage.Some discovered human remains in the debris.
Since then, Gaza’s health ministry, governed by Hamas, has reported more than 46,910 deaths.
Due to difficulties in getting relief to those in need, the majority of the 2.3 million people living there have also been displaced, there is extensive damage, and there are acute shortages of food, fuel, medication, and shelter.
Palestinians celebrates the ceasefire in Gaza
Celebrations broke out early Sunday across the Gaza Strip as people expressed hope for relief after 15 months of war that had claimed tens of thousands of lives and devastated large parts of the region.
Some of the celebrations saw masked militants among the crowds who chanted slogans in their support, as reported by the Associated Press.
Gaza’s civil defense, which operated under the Hamas-run government, held a parade in Gaza City, where first responders waved the Palestinian flag alongside other participants.
Palestinian residents began returning to their homes in parts of Gaza City, despite ongoing tank shelling to the east, near the Israeli border, overnight.
Local residents reported seeing families walking back, carrying their belongings on donkey carts.
