EAn agreed ceasefire between Israel and the Islamist Hamas officially came into force on Friday morning. It began at 7 a.m. local time (6 a.m. CET) and is expected to last at least four days. According to the Israeli army, there was still a rocket alarm in the Israeli border area. The Israeli army said warning sirens sounded in communities along the Gaza Strip. In previous Gaza wars, there had been repeated violations of ceasefires by both sides at the beginning. The Israeli army had also previously intensified its attacks in the Gaza Strip and will keep its soldiers stationed in the Gaza Strip during the break in fighting.
In general, an extension of the ceasefire is possible for up to ten days, as the Gulf Emirate of Qatar, which is mediating in the conflict, announced. At 4 p.m. local time (3 p.m. CET), the first 13 hostages held in the Gaza Strip are to be released as part of the agreement between Israel and Hamas. They are women and children. In return, three Palestinian prisoners will be released from Israeli prisons for each hostage. This is also about women and minors.
The ceasefire will also result in more aid deliveries to the civilian population in the Gaza Strip. The UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA wants to use the pause in fighting to distribute urgently needed relief supplies. Hamas and the Israeli government had agreed on a maximum ten-day ceasefire that would apply to the sealed-off Gaza Strip and Israel. Part of the deal is an exchange of up to 100 hostages from Israel for up to 300 Palestinian prisoners.
The attacks by the Israeli army could be intensified until the ceasefire, especially in the contested north of the Gaza Strip, Israeli military spokesman Richard Hecht announced on Thursday. The operation will continue until the army is ordered by the Israeli government to stop fighting. The UN Emergency Relief Office also reported on Friday morning that Israel had intensified attacks from the air, on the ground and at sea as of the afternoon of the previous day.
During the ceasefire, all sides would stop their military activities, announced a spokesman for the Qassam Brigades, which forms the armed wing of the Islamist organization Hamas. It is possible to extend the ceasefire to ten days. According to the Israeli military, after the intensive fighting has temporarily ended, there will continue to be many operations in the Gaza Strip until there is no longer a military threat from there. Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said taking control of the northern Gaza Strip was the first stage in a long war. During the ceasefire, the military is focusing on planning the next phases of the fight.
The latest Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel’s history, which terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups committed on October 7th in Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip. On the Israeli side, more than 1,200 people were killed, including at least 850 civilians. Around 240 hostages were taken to Gaza, including several Germans.
According to Hamas, three Palestinian prisoners will be released from Israeli prisons for every hostage kidnapped. A total of 50 hostages are expected to be released within four days. These are women and young people under the age of 19. Overall, the agreement reached between both parties to the conflict provides for an exchange of up to 100 hostages from Israel for up to 300 Palestinian prisoners.
Palestinian: 12-year-old killed in West Bank
Meanwhile, according to Palestinian sources, a 12-year-old was killed in a clash with the Israeli army in the West Bank. The health ministry in Ramallah said the boy was shot in the chest on Thursday evening. The Israeli army carried out a raid in the town of Beita, south of Nablus. The child was initially taken to hospital and later died there as a result of his serious injuries, reported the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
A special flight brought 103 Russian nationals evacuated from the Gaza Strip back to Moscow early on Friday morning. The Russian Emergencies Ministry announced this on the Telegram news service. The group flew home aboard a chartered Ilyushin 76 aircraft. Accordingly, 101 Russian citizens were brought from the Gaza Strip to Egypt in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of Russian evacuees to more than 750. More than 650 have already been flown to Russia, including more than 300 children, the ministry said.
The ceasefire is scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. German time. The first Israeli hostages are expected to be released at 3 p.m. The ceasefire is intended to bring larger aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip.
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