GAZA/CAIRO/JERUSALEM,(Reuters) – On Sunday, Hamas released three Israeli hostages, while Israel freed 90 Palestinian prisoners, marking the first day of a ceasefire that paused a 15-month-long war, which had caused widespread destruction in the Gaza Strip and heightened tensions across the Middle East.
The truce allowed Palestinians to return to their devastated neighborhoods and begin rebuilding their lives, while relief trucks delivered urgently needed aid. Meanwhile, in Gaza, crowds celebrated as Hamas fighters emerged from hiding.
Fireworks lit up the sky in celebration as buses carrying Palestinian prisoners arrived in Ramallah in the West Bank, where thousands gathered to welcome them. Among those released by Israel were 69 women and 21 teenage boys from the West Bank and Jerusalem, according to Hamas.
In Tel Aviv, hundreds of Israelis gathered in a square near the defense headquarters, cheering and shedding tears as they watched a live broadcast from Gaza showing three female hostages entering a Red Cross vehicle, surrounded by Hamas fighters.
