Gaza ceasefire begins after Hamas shares names of 3 hostages
What's the story
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect on Sunday, after a delay due to Hamas's late submission of a list of hostages.
The truce, originally set for 8:30am local time, was delayed until 11:15am after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that the ceasefire would not come into effect until Israel received the names of the hostages to be released.
Hostage release
Hamas releases names of Israeli hostages amid ceasefire
Hamas blamed "technical reasons" and continuous Israeli strikes, which persisted until the ceasefire came into effect.
Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes killed 13 Palestinians during the period, Palestinian medics said.
The Israeli military confirmed it was striking targets in Gaza on Netanyahu's orders.
Hamas later released the names of three Israeli women hostages—Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher, and Emily Damari—who are likely to be freed in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Conflict resolution
Ceasefire agreement aims to end 15-month conflict
The ceasefire seeks to end a 15-month-long conflict that started with a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The attack killed around 1,200 Israelis and sparked a massive Israeli military response that ravaged Gaza and killed nearly 47,000 Palestinians.
The ceasefire's first phase will continue for six weeks and see 33 hostages released from Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
The International Committee of the Red Cross will oversee the release process in Gaza.
Homecoming
Gaza residents return home amid ceasefire celebrations
Celebrations erupted across Gaza as some residents returned home despite shelling near the Israeli border. However, the delay underscored the fragility of the agreement.
An Israeli official said that mediators assured them the list would be delivered and efforts to resolve timing issues were ongoing.
The ceasefire comes amid political changes in Israel's government with ministers from Itamar Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party resigning in opposition to the truce.
Despite this political shift, Netanyahu's coalition remains intact.
Soldier recovered
Israel recovers soldier's body, significant ceasefire begins
Separately, Israel said it had recovered Oron Shaul's body from Gaza. Shaul was an Israeli soldier killed in a previous conflict with Hamas in 2014.
The current ceasefire is viewed as more important than a previous weeklong pause over a year ago and has the potential to end hostilities permanently.
However, negotiations for subsequent phases are likely to tackle unresolved issues of remaining hostages, and possible resumption of conflict after six weeks.