A temporary truce in the Israel-Hamas war came into effect early on Friday, setting the stage for the exchange of dozens of hostages held by militants in Gaza for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
The halt in fighting was scheduled to begin at 7am local time (5am GMT) and is to last at least four days.
Shortly after the ceasefire took effect, lorries carrying fuel and other supplies could be seen entering the terminal at the Rafah crossing from Egypt, where they were transferred to others set to carry them into Gaza.
During the truce, Gaza’s ruling Hamas group pledged to free at least 50 of the about 240 hostages it and other militants took in their October 7 attack on Israel.
In turn, Israel is to free three Palestinian prisoners for each released hostage. The releases are to take place in stages over the next four days.
The truce deal was reached after weeks of intense indirect negotiations, with Qatar, the United States, and Egypt serving as mediators. If it holds, it would mark the first significant break in fighting since Israel declared war on Hamas seven weeks ago.
Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said the first 13 hostages, made up of women and children, will be freed by Hamas on Friday afternoon.
He did not say how many Palestinian prisoners would be freed, but officials have said three would be freed for every hostage.
Under the truce deal, 50 hostages are supposed to be freed in stages, in exchange for the release of what Hamas said would be 150 Palestinian prisoners. Israel said the truce would be extended an extra day for every additional 10 hostages freed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it notified the families of hostages listed for release Friday.
Mr al-Ansari, who said increased aid for Palestinians will start to enter Gaza “as soon as possible”, said the hope is the “momentum” from this deal will lead to an “end to this violence.”
Hamas said 200 trucks a day will enter Gaza carrying aid. Qatar said the aid will include fuel, but has given no details on quantities.
Mr Netanyahu vowed to continue the war after the truce expires, with the goal of destroying Hamas’ military capabilities, ending its 16-year rule in Gaza and returning all of the estimated 240 captives held in Gaza by Hamas and other groups.
“We will continue it until we achieve all our goals,” Mr Netanyahu said, adding that he had delivered the same message in a phone call to US President Joe Biden.
Washington has provided extensive military and diplomatic support to Israel since the start of the war.
Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron was due on Friday to meet with Palestinian leaders and commit a further £30 million in aid for people in Gaza.
The former prime minister is urging “all parties to continue to work towards the release of every hostage” after holding talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog during a visit to Israel on Thursday.
On Friday he will be in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, meeting Palestinian leaders and agencies delivering aid in Gaza advocating adherence to the new agreement on all sides.
Lord Cameron said: “We are hopeful that today will see the release of hostages, and I am urging all parties to continue to work towards the release of every hostage. A pause will also allow access for life-saving aid to the people of Gaza.
“I am proud that a fourth UK flight carrying critical supplies landed in Egypt today, and I can announce new £30 million of funding which will be spent on vital aid such as shelter and medical provisions.
“It is vital to protect civilians from harm, and we are urgently looking at all avenues to get aid into Gaza, including land, maritime and air routes.”
The agreement for a four-day ceasefire in Gaza appeared to have hit a last-minute snag, with Lord Cameron telling Mr Netanyahu that he wanted all parties to the agreement to “make it happen”.
There are hopes that the lull in the fighting will clear the way for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza to ease the suffering of citizens who have been bombarded and besieged by Israel as it attacks Hamas in response to the October 7 atrocities.
Lord Cameron, who earlier visited Kibbutz Be’eri, scene of some of the worst violence during the Hamas assault, said: “There is never any excuse for this sort of hostage-taking.
“All the hostages should be released, but I hope that everyone who is responsible and behind this agreement can make it happen, to bring relief to those families, including, of course, there are British nationals who have been taken hostage.”
