Israel-Hamas ceasefire takes effect in Gaza

A ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has taken effect after a nearly three-hour delay, pausing a devastating 15-month war in the Palestinian enclave.

The ceasefire came into effect at 11:15am local time (09:15 GMT) on Sunday after Hamas handed over to Israel a list of three female captives to be released as part of the deal.

The deal stipulates a pause in fighting and the release of three Israeli captives and about 95 Palestinian prisoners on the first day.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the release of the three captives would take place after 4:00pm (14:00 GMT) on Sunday. It also said four other living female captives would be freed in seven days.

A spokesman for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas had begun.

“We confirm that the names of the three captives who will be released today have been handed over to the Israeli side. They are three Israeli citizens, one of whom holds Romanian citizenship and the other British citizenship. Thus, the ceasefire has begun,” Majed al-Ansari said in a statement.

Qatar, along with Egypt and the United States, were the three mediators in the ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel.

Earlier, Israel blamed Hamas for the delay after the Palestinian group failed to provide a list naming the first three captives to be released under the deal. Hamas attributed the delay to “technical” reasons, without specifying what those were.

Two hours after the 8:30am (06:30 GMT) deadline, Hamas said it had sent the list of names, and Israeli officials confirmed receipt. Hamas named the captives it was to release on Sunday as Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari.

Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Khan Younis in southern Gaza, said Palestinians are now trying to return to their homes in an attempt to rebuild their lives. She said thousands of Palestinians will be able to go to areas they were not allowed to before, including Jabalia and Rafah in northern and southern Gaza, respectively.

“Since this morning, people here were waiting for the ceasefire to take effect, and to start moving towards Rafah. We also saw a lot of people putting together their luggage … getting ready to start going back,” she said.

“But those people also know that most of their houses are not even there. Most of their houses are not standing any more. However, most Palestinians say they are going to put their tents on top of the rubble. They miss their neighbourhoods … or whatever is left of them.”

‘We deserve life’
A displaced Palestinian woman from north Gaza told Al Jazeera she was “extremely happy about this because we deserve life”.

“We have seen people torn into pieces so this ceasefire agreement is a piece of good news, and we need to thank everyone who played a role in this and who helped us to put an end to this war,” she said.

The Government Media Office in Gaza said thousands of Palestinian police officers have been deployed in the territory “as part of a government plan to maintain security and order across various governorates”, adding that municipalities have started “reopening and rehabilitating streets”.