The Hamas terrorist organization released this Friday 24 hostages who had been held captive in Gaza since the beginning of October, during the first stage of an exchange under a ceasefire agreement that will last four days.
The hostages freed by Hamas included 13 Israelis, 10 people from Thailand and one from the Philippines, according to information from Qatar.
As part of the pact, Israel released 39 Palestinians simultaneously.
This hostage exchange agreement also paved the way for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, where residents have faced weeks of relentless Israeli shelling and lack vital supplies such as water, food and medicine.
The pact has also represented a moment of hope for families in Israel who have been worried about their loved ones captured during the Hamas attack on October 7, which sparked the conflict.
The start of the ceasefire occurred on Friday morning and the release of the hostages began at dusk: a line of ambulances left Gaza through the Rafah crossing in Egypt, carrying the freed hostages, according to live images of the Egyptian state television Al-Qahera.
He Canal 13 from Israel showed an older woman getting out of an ambulance alongside a little girl and then walking slowly toward a building. An Egyptian medical team held the arms of another elderly woman as she walked, he cited AP.
In a square called "Hostage Square" in Tel Aviv, a crowd of Israelis celebrated the liberation. The Israeli military later confirmed that the hostages had returned to Israel and were undergoing medical checks before being transferred to hospitals to be reunited with their families.
In the West Bank, thousands of people also gathered near Israel's Ofer military prison, awaiting the release of Palestinian prisoners, some waving Palestinian flags in celebration.
Since those hours in Gaza – where 2.3 million Palestinians live – calm has been experienced for the first time after the start of Israeli bombings in response to the Hamas attack on October 7.
The war has left thousands dead in the city, displaced three-quarters of the population from their homes and devastated vast residential areas.
In Israel there is also calm after the rocket attacks from Gaza were silenced.
Gaza militants pledged to release 50 hostages in exchange for 150 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel during these four days of ceasefire. On October 21, Hamas released two Americans kidnapped in Gaza, Judith Tai Raanan, 59, and her daughter Natalie Shoshana Raanan, 17.
Israel has claimed the ceasefire could be extended if more hostages are released, but has vowed to resume its massive offensive once the deal's date ends.
Hamas is holding more than 240 hostages, while some families believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is not doing enough to bring them back. Israel currently holds 7,200 Palestinians prisoner, including around 2,000 arrested since the start of the war.
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