[Three hostages were released from Hamas captivity in Gaza and returned to Israel on Sunday as a highly anticipated ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect. The agreement delivers the first reprieve for the people of Gaza in more than a year and only the second since the Israeli bombardment began. The military offensive launched by Israel in response to Hamas’ October 7 attacks has killed nearly 47,000 Palestinians and injured 110,750 more, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.
The deal will see the release of dozens of Israeli hostages in exchange for almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and will allow for a significant uptick in aid to enter the enclave, where residents have long faced dire humanitarian conditions. Large crowds gathered in Gaza City to watch as the three women were handed by Hamas to the Red Cross, and Israelis had gathered in the so-called Hostages Square in Tel Aviv to celebrate the release of the hostages.
In exchange for the release of the hostages, Israel will free 90 Palestinian prisoners on Sunday, including 69 women and nine minors, the youngest of whom is 15. The respite from violence means that many Palestinians displaced in Gaza during Israel’s war are returning home, but the moment is bittersweet as many houses have been reduced to rubble.
The first phase of the ceasefire will last for six weeks and will see the staggered release of 33 Israeli hostages. The agreement allows for a dramatic uptick in humanitarian relief to enter Gaza, with the number of aid trucks increasing to 600 per day, a significant improvement from the 614 truckloads of aid that entered Gaza in the first two weeks of January.
The ceasefire is not guaranteed to last beyond the first phase, and Israeli officials have acknowledged that negotiations will be needed to progress the ceasefire to its next phases. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar stressed that the agreed ceasefire is temporary and that it is not automatic to move from one phase to the other phase.
The deal has caused a political storm in Israel, with three far-right ministers from the Otzma Yehudit party resigning from Netanyahu’s government in opposition to the ceasefire. Another far-right minister, Bezalel Smotrich, opposes the deal but has not resigned, and threatened to resign if Israel does not return to war after the first phase of the truce ends. With the second and third phases uncertain, there are no guarantees that Israel will not resume its bombardment of Gaza.
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