Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners on Monday after Hamas handed over three Israeli hostages, completing the first exchange under a long-awaited truce aimed at ending more than 15 months of war in Gaza.  The three hostages released Sunday, all women, were reunited with their families and taken to hospital in central Israel where a doctor said they were in stable condition. Hours later in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinian prisoners released by Israel in exchange left Ofer prison on buses at around 1:00 am (2300 GMT Sunday), with jubilant crowds celebrating their arrival in the nearby town of Beitunia. As the ceasefire took effect on Sunday morning, thousands of displaced, war-weary Palestinians set off across the devastated Gaza Strip to return home. 

In the northern area of Jabalia, hundreds streamed down a sandy path, heading to an apocalyptic landscape piled with rubble and destroyed buildings. “We are finally in our home. There is no home left, just rubble, but it’s our home,” said Rana Mohsen, 43, back in Jabalia. The initial 42-day truce was brokered by Qatari, US and Egyptian mediators. It is meant to enable a surge of sorely needed humanitarian aid into Gaza, as more Israeli hostages are released in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody, Israeli forces leave some areas and the parties negotiate the terms of a permanent ceasefire.

The three Israeli ex-hostages, Emily Damari, Romi Gonen and Doron Steinbrecher, were taken back to Israel by security forces after Hamas fighters handed them over to the Red Cross in a bustling square in Gaza City, surrounded by a sea of people, including gunmen. “After 471 days Emily is finally home,” said her mother Mandy Damari, but “for too many other families the impossible wait continues”. Steinbrecher’s family said in a statement that “our heroic Dodo, who survived 471 days in Hamas captivity, begins her rehabilitation journey today”. 

In central Tel Aviv, there was elation among the crowd who had waited for hours for the news of their release. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group hailed their return as “a beacon of light”, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they had emerged “from darkness”. During this initial truce, 33 Israeli hostages, 31 of whom were taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack, are due to be returned from Gaza in exchange for around 1,900 Palestinians.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)