The long-awaited ceasefire in Gaza comes into effect after a three-hour delay. 31-year-old Doron Steinbrecher and British-Israeli duo Emily Damari, 28, and Romi Gonen, 24, are the first three to be released by Hamas.
The ceasefire was supposed to begin at 8:30 a.m. local time on Sunday, but Israel postponed it after Hamas did not provide a list of hostages in time, A2 CNN reports.
Hamas itself said the postponement was due to "technical reasons on the ground." But Benjamin Netanyahu did not wait and acted as he had warned: War until Hamas publishes the names.
And the Israeli attack continued in Gaza, with images showing large clouds of smoke rising in the north of the territory. "The IDF is continuing to operate and strike terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip. A short while ago, IDF artillery and aircraft struck a number of terrorist targets in northern and central Gaza. The IDF remains ready in defense and attack and will not allow any harm to the citizens of Israel," the statement said, parallel to the attacks that followed, A2 CNN reports.
Hamas's delay in releasing the names of the first three Israeli hostages it plans to free has cost more casualties on the ground. Israel's attacks on Gaza have killed 13 people, according to the Hamas-run civil defense agency.
The terrorist organization attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. One of them, 24-year-old Romi Gonen, was kidnapped at the Supernova festival where the horrific attack was marked, which was followed by a massive Israeli offensive in Gaza, during which more than 46,800 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, reports A2 CNN.
Today is still a holiday with the ceasefire in effect, with Palestinians celebrating in the streets. Meanwhile, hardline Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir and two other ministers from his nationalist-religious party have resigned from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet over the Gaza ceasefire deal.
Although their party is no longer part of the governing coalition, it will not try to topple Netanyahu's government.
(A2 Televizion)
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