Summary
That’s all from our live coverage of the Middle East for today. In case you missed anything, here’s a quick round-up of all the day’s developments.
Three Israeli and five Thai nationals who had been held in Gaza since the 7 October attack were released under the terms of the ceasefire deal
Pictures showed the Israeli hostages being greeted by their families after arriving back in Israel, while the Thai prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, said she was “elated” by the release of the five Thais
A total of 110 Palestinian prisoners were also freed by Israel in exchange and were met in Ramallah by cheering crowds
Zakaria Zubeidi, the former leader of a Palestinian militant group who was jailed for attacks that killed several Israelis, was among those released
The prisoner release was delayed after Israel objected to the way in which some of the hostages were led through large crowds before being handed to the Red Cross. It later said it had received assurance of the “safe release” of hostages in future from mediators
The Israeli military confirmed it had killed approximately 10 Palestinians in a strike on a “gathering of armed terrorists” in a village in the occupied West Bank
The death toll in Gaza since Israel launched its operation now stands at 47,460, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health
Israel’s ban on the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, came into force, with the agency told to vacate its headquarters in Jerusalem
Norway announced an additional $24m contribution to Unrwa, with its foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, saying: “Gaza is in ruins, and Unrwa’s help is more necessary than ever”
The European Union said its foreign ministers would hold separate talks with representatives of Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the coming weeks
Thanks for following our live coverage. You can find our latest write-up on an eventful day here:
Israel confirms release of 110 Palestinian prisoners
Israel’s Prison Service has confirmed the release of 110 prisoners under the terms of the ceasefire deal.
Two buses carrying prisoners arrived in Ramallah in the West Bank this afternoon and were welcomed by crowds of hundreds of people.
