Israel-Hamas conflict live updates: Ceasefire set to begin, 13 hostages to be released
Save articles for later
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.
1 of 1
The first hostages released will be women and children
A spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry Majed Al-Ansari said that Palestinians would also be released from Israeli jails as part of the deal.
The first group of Israeli hostages to be released would be 13 women and children, Ansari said.
“If there were a group of hostages from the same family they will be released together in this first batch,” he added, saying that a total of 50 hostages will be released over four days.
Egypt, which helped mediate between Hamas and Israel, confirmed the start time of the truce and that 13 hostages would be released in the afternoon, adding in statements from its state information service that it was receiving lists of captives due to be freed on both sides.
A woman holds a sign showing a family held hostage in the Gaza Strip in Tel Aviv.Credit: Getty
Hamas confirms all hositilites for its forces will cease
Mediators in Qatar have helped broker the deal and in releasing the details said they hoped that “this truce will lead to a chance to start a wider work to achieve a permanent truce.”
Hamas confirmed on its Telegram channel that all hostilities from its forces would cease.
But Abu Ubaida, spokesperson for Hamas’ armed wing, later referred to “this temporary truce” in a video message that called for an “escalation of the confrontation with (Israel) on all resistance fronts”, including the Israeli-occupied West Bank where violence has surged since the Gaza war erupted almost seven weeks ago.
Israel’s military said its troops would stay behind a ceasefire line inside Gaza, without giving details of its position.
“These will be complicated days and nothing is certain,” Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said.
“Control over northern Gaza is the first step of a long war, and we are preparing for the next stages,” he added. Israel had received an initial list of hostages to be freed and was in touch with families, the prime minister’s office said.
An explosion following an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, on Thursday.Credit: AP Photo/Leo Correa
Ceasefire due to start
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the conflict in Gaza where a four day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is due to begin shortl.
The truce is due to begin at 7am local time (4pm AEDT) and involves a comprehensive ceasefire in north and south Gaza, followed by the release of some of the more than 200 hostages taken by Hamas during the Iran-backed Islamists’ October 7 attack inside Israel.
The first group of 13 hostages is expected to be released at 4pm (1am Saturday AEDT) when additional aid will also begin flowing into Gaza.
Egypt said 130,000 litres of diesel and four trucks of gas will be delivered daily to Gaza when the truce starts, and that 200 trucks of aid would enter Gaza daily.
Palestinians flee to the southern Gaza Strip, on the outskirts of Gaza City, during the Israeli bombardment.Credit: AP
1 of 1
Most Viewed in World
Source: Read Full Article