Three Israeli hostages arrive in Israel as fragile ceasefire passes first hurdle

Palestinians celebrate a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel in the West Bank city of Beitunia, on Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — The first three hostages released from Gaza have arrived in Israel, the military announced Sunday, hours after the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took hold. Their mothers were waiting to meet them.

Footage showed the three women walking to Red Cross vehicles in Gaza City, surrounded by a crowd that swelled into the thousands as people held up cellphones and scrambled onto cars. The vehicles were accompanied by masked, armed men who wore green Hamas headbands and struggled to guard the handover.

No further glimpses of the three women were immediately expected as they were taken for medical assessment. “They appear to be in good health,” President Joe Biden said in brief remarks.

In Tel Aviv, thousands of people who gathered to watch the news on large screens erupted in applause. For months, many had gathered in the square to demand a ceasefire deal. Relatives of the women jumped, clapped and wept.

“An entire nation embraces you,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Romi Gonen, 24, Emily Damari, 28, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, were released. Gonen was abducted from the Nova music festival, while the others were kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Damari is an Israeli-British dual citizen and Steinbrecher has Israeli and Romanian citizenship.

The ceasefire ushers in an initial six weeks of calm and raises hopes for the release of nearly 100 remaining hostages and an end to the devastating 15-month war. A last-minute delay by Hamas put off the truce’s start by nearly three hours, but the spokesman for Hamas' military wing later said it is committed to the ceasefire.

Even before the ceasefire took effect, celebrations broke out across Gaza and some Palestinians began heading home.

Next up was the release of 90 Palestinian prisoners later Sunday. In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, families and friends gathered excitedly as cars honked and people waved the Palestinian flag.

The truce, which started at 11:15 a.m. local time, is the first step toward ultimately ending the conflict and returning hostages abducted in Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack.

In the interim between the planned ceasefire time and when it took hold, Israeli fire killed at least 26 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. It did not say whether they were civilians or fighters. The military has warned people to stay away from Israeli forces as they retreat to a buffer zone inside Gaza.

Israel’s hard-line national security minister, meanwhile, said his Jewish Power faction was quitting the government in protest over the ceasefire. Itamar Ben-Gvir’s departure weakens Netanyahu’s coalition but will not affect the truce.

In a separate development, Israel announced it had recovered the body of Oron Shaul, a soldier killed in the 2014 Israel-Hamas war, in a special operation in Gaza. The bodies of Shaul and another soldier, Hadar Goldin, had remained after the 2014 war.

What’s next

The ceasefire deal was announced last week after a year of mediation by the United States, Qatar and Egypt. The outgoing Biden administration and President-elect Donald Trump’s team had both pressed for an agreement to be reached before the inauguration on Monday.

Netanyahu on Saturday warned that he had Trump’s backing to continue fighting if necessary.

The 42-day first phase of the ceasefire should see 33 hostages gradually returned and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees released. The next release of hostages is expected on Saturday.

There also should be a surge of humanitarian aid, with hundreds of trucks entering Gaza daily, far more than Israel allowed before. The U.N. World Food Program said trucks started entering through two crossings. Biden’s top Middle East adviser, Brett McGurk, told CBS 800 trucks were expected to flow in Sunday.

This is just the second ceasefire in the war, longer and more consequential than a weeklong pause in November 2023, with the potential to end the fighting for good.

Negotiations on the ceasefire’s far more difficult second phase should begin in just over two weeks. Major questions remain, including whether the war will resume after the first phase.

‘Joy mixed with pain’

Across Gaza, there was relief and grief. The fighting has killed tens of thousands, destroyed large areas and displaced most of the population.

“This ceasefire was a joy mixed with pain, because my son was martyred in this war,” said Rami Nofal, a displaced man from Gaza City.

Masked militants appeared at some celebrations, where crowds chanted slogans in support of them, according to Associated Press reporters in Gaza. The Hamas-run police began deploying in public after mostly lying low due to Israeli airstrikes.

Some families set off for home on foot, their belongings loaded on donkey carts.

In the southern city of Rafah, residents returned to find massive destruction. Some found human remains in the rubble, including skulls.

“It’s like you see a Hollywood horror movie,” resident Mohamed Abu Taha said as he inspected the ruins of his family’s home.

Already, Israeli forces were pulling back from areas. Residents of Beit Lahiya and Jabaliya in northern Gaza told the AP they didn’t see Israeli troops there.

Israelis divided over ceasefire deal

In Israel, people remained divided over the agreement.

Asher Pizem, 35, from the city of Sderot, said the deal had merely postponed the next confrontation with Hamas. He also criticized Israel for allowing aid into Gaza, saying it would contribute to the militant group’s revival.

“They will take the time and attack again,” he said while viewing Gaza’s smoldering ruins from a small hill in southern Israel with other Israelis gathered there.

When Biden was asked Sunday whether he has any concerns about Hamas regrouping, he said no.

Immense toll

The toll of the war has been immense, and new details will now emerge. The head of the Rafah municipality in Gaza, Ahmed al-Sufi, said a large part of the infrastructure, including water, electricity and road networks, was destroyed, in addition to thousands of homes.

Over 46,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which says women and children make up more than half the fatalities but does not distinguish between civilians and fighters.

The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that sparked the war killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and militants abducted around 250 others. More than 100 hostages were freed during the weeklong ceasefire in November 2023.

Some 90 per cent of Gaza’s population has been displaced. Rebuilding — if the ceasefire reaches its final phase — will take several years at least. Major questions about Gaza’s future, political and otherwise, remain unresolved.

Magdy reported from Cairo and Goldenberg from Tel Aviv, Israel. Associated Press reporters Josef Federman in Jerusalem, Sam Mednick in Ramallah, West Bank, and Mohammad Jahjouh in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, contributed to this report.