Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and detainees returned home on the first of four planned days without fighting, while trucks brought much-needed aid into Gaza. President Biden said he was hopeful that the temporary truce could lead to a longer peace.
According to The New York Times, some two dozen hostages held in Gaza, including Israelis and Thai nationals, were released from captivity on Friday, Egyptian and Qatari officials said, and Israel confirmed it had freed 39 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, completing the first exchange laid out by a deal between Israel and Hamas for a temporary cease-fire.
The hostages were initially transferred to Egypt before being returned to Israel. Israeli officials released the names of the 13 freed Israeli hostages, all women and children. Four were young children and most of the nine women were over age 70.
After earlier statements that 12 Thais were also freed, the governments of Qatar and Egypt which were involved in mediating the cease-fire deal, said the count was actually 10 Thais and one Filipino.