MONITORING (SW) – A ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip took effect on Sunday after a nearly three-hour delay, pausing a 15-month-old war that has brought devastation and seismic political change to the Middle East.
Residents and a medical worker in Gaza said that they had heard no new fighting or military strikes since about half an hour before it was finally implemented.
Israeli airstrikes and artillery attacks killed 13 Palestinians between 0630 GMT, when the ceasefire was meant to begin, and 0915 GMT, when it actually took effect, Palestinian medics said.
Two hours after the deadline, Hamas said it had sent the list of names, and Israeli officials confirmed receipt. Hamas named the hostages it was to release on Sunday as Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari, reported Reuters.
Israel did not immediately confirm the names.
The highly anticipated ceasefire deal could help usher in an end to the Gaza war, which began after Hamas, which controls the tiny coastal territory, attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, according to Israeli authorities.
Israel’s response has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed nearly 47,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza-based health authorities.
The war also set off a confrontation throughout the Middle East between Israel and its arch-foe Iran, which backs Hamas and other anti-Israeli and anti-American paramilitary forces across the region.
