4-day cease-fire in effect in Gaza ahead of hostage releases
The long-awaited truce that's part of the complex hostage deal between Israel and Hamas has begun.
The four-day cease-fire went into effect at 7 a.m. local time.
The pause in fighting is especially welcome to the more than 2 million people in Gaza who have been under constant bombardment for weeks. Thousands of Palestinians started fleeing toward southern Gaza when the truce began.
During the pause in fighting, Hamas has agreed to free at least 50 of the hostages it took during its terror attacks on Israel on Oct. 7.
The 50 women and children out of the nearly 240 hostages being held in Gaza are expected to be released over four days in exchange for 150 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel. The first 13 hostages are set to be freed today by 4 p.m. local time (9 a.m. Eastern in the U.S.). Families of the hostages set to be released have been notified.
Another part of the deal calls for additional aid to be brought into Gaza, with some of that already underway. Trucks loaded with aid began entering southern Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah crossing.
Israel is set to allow up to 300 trucks per day during the cease-fire. Included among the first wave were tankers carrying much-needed diesel fuel and others with natural gas for cooking. The fuel will help operate essential infrastructure, which has been decimated during the war. Israel has been concerned about fuel deliveries, saying Hamas uses it for rocket attacks and had previously taken fuel intended for civilians.
Airstrikes went on throughout the day Thursday when the hostage deal failed to go into effect as first announced, with so many people waiting to see what that meant. One hit a refugee camp in central Gaza, killing at least a dozen people, including women and children. Strikes continued as the tense deal was being finalized with help from Qatar and Egypt. As the fighting intensified, so did the pressure on all sides to reach an agreement.
So much hinges on hostages being freed. Israel has said it would extend the four-day pause in fighting one day for every 10 additional hostages released.
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