Hamas on Friday released 24 hostages who had been held captive in Gaza for weeks, including 13 Israelis, 10 people from Thailand and a Filipino citizen, according to Qatar and the Red Cross, the first stage of a swap for Palestinian prisoners in Israel agreed as part of a temporary ceasefire.
Hours after guns fell silent for the first time in seven weeks of conflict, the International Red Cross said it had begun an operation to facilitate the transfer of hostages in Gaza to Israel.
