Palestinian group Hamas fighters escort Israeli-French captive Ofer Kalderon on a stage before handing him over to a Red Cross team in Khan Younis. AFP
Yarden Bibas, 35, and French-Israeli Ofer Kalderon, 54, were released in a highly stage-managed and orderly handover to the Red Cross. American-Israeli Keith Siegel, 65, was released shortly after.
The truce deal, announced earlier in January after months of fruitless negotiations, took effect on 19 January, bringing to a halt more than 15 months of Israeli war on Gaza.
A total of 33 Israeli captives are expected to be freed in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners during the truce’s initial six weeks, which will also see the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza and an increase in humanitarian aid to the territory devastated by the Israeli war.
Israel and Hamas are set to begin negotiating a second phase of the ceasefire next week, which calls for releasing the remaining captives and extending the truce indefinitely. Israel's assault could resume in early March if an agreement is not reached.
Palestinian health authorities in Gaza also announced that the long-shuttered Rafah border crossing with Egypt would reopen on Saturday for thousands of Palestinians in desperate need of medical care — a breakthrough signalling that the ceasefire agreement continues to gain traction.
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