Israel-Hamas war updates: First Palestinians released from Israeli prisons
These are the updates on the Israel-Hamas war for Friday, November 24.
This live blog is now closed. Please follow our latest updates here.
This live blog is now closed. Please follow our latest updates here.
- First group of 39 Palestinian women and children released from Israeli prisons as part of Israel-Hamas truce deal.
- Mediator Qatar says 13 Israelis, including dual nationals, 10 Thais and one Filipino released in Gaza.
- After seven weeks of war, Palestinians in bombarded Gaza welcome first pause in fighting with mixed feelings.
- Israeli army says northern Gaza is out of bounds, blocks displaced Palestinians from returning home.
- More than 14,800 people killed in Gaza since October 7. In Israel, the official death toll from Hamas’s attacks stands at about 1,200.
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Today was the first of a four-day pause in fighting as part of a captive and prisoner release deal between Israel and Hamas. Read about how it unfolded, here.
Read more about the captives released by Hamas, here – and the Palestinian detainees released by Israel, here.
Here’s what happened today
We will soon be closing this live page. Here’s a recap of today’s key events.
- A four-day pause in fighting began in Gaza as part of an agreement between Hamas and Israel.
- In total, 13 Israeli captives, 10 Thai citizens and one Filipino were released from Gaza; Thirty-nine Palestinian women and child prisoners were also freed from Israeli jails.
- Hamas is expected to release 50 Israeli captives over the four days, with Israel releasing 150 Palestinian detainees; the agreement could potentially be extended.
- Israeli officials reiterated that fighting would resume after the pause, with Prime Minister Netanyahu saying the war would not stop until all of Israel’s aims have been accomplished, including the release of all captives and the eradication of Hamas.
- The UN has called for the truce to lead to a lasting ceasefire, with officials warning that Palestinians in Gaza face dire humanitarian conditions.
- The break in fighting has allowed more aid to enter Gaza, with UNRWA unloading 137 trucks in the largest humanitarian convoy since the war began.
- In the occupied West Bank, at least 31 Palestinians were injured by Israeli army “suppression” as they awaited the release of detainees from Ofer Prison, Wafa reported.
Australia PM welcomes release of captives, humanitarian access to Gaza
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has welcomed the truce and release of captives from Gaza, and called for steps to be taken “towards a sustainable ceasefire and long-term, enduring peace”.
In a post on social media, Albanese said the freeing of captives and allowing humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip “represents important progress and Australia welcomes them”.
Australia welcomes the release of hostages and the pause in hostilities to allow humanitarian access to Gaza.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) November 24, 2023
UNRWA USA mourns deaths of philanthropy director’s relatives in Gaza
The US branch of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Hani Almadhoun lost his brother, sister-in-law and their children in Israeli attacks on Gaza.
“These senseless losses deepen the grief and losses that Hani and our colleagues have already shouldered,” UNRWA USA said.
“Hani’s family is among tens of thousands of Palestinians who have been tragically killed in Israeli military air strikes across Gaza since October 7.”
Today, with heavy hearts, we share gut-wrenching news: pic.twitter.com/yrBlXwhkHU
— UNRWA USA (@unrwausa) November 24, 2023
Canadian Muslim group urges Ottawa to condemn Israeli leaders’ anti-Palestinian rhetoric
The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) pointed to remarks by Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders, including Defence Minister Gallant who said last month that Israel was fighting “human animals”.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well as “his government, and all Canadian leaders must condemn the horrific language”, NCCM said.
The group added that the rhetoric “has fueled” the deaths of thousands of Palestinian civilians in Gaza since October 7.
1/3. Top leaders in Israel are using increasingly horrific language to call for ethnic cleansing and more death in #Gaza.
This rhetoric has fueled the deaths of 12,000 civilians, including over 5,000 children, already. pic.twitter.com/lcbRH69XgF
— NCCM (@nccm) November 24, 2023
Amid Gaza war, activists in Argentina aim to expel Israeli water company
The upscale neighbourhood of Recoleta was pulsing with the sound of drums and chanting last month, as protesters gathered outside the Palestinian embassy in Buenos Aires to call for an end to Israel’s war in Gaza.
But amid the sea of Palestinian flags, Silvia Ferreyra gripped a different symbol of solidarity. Above her head, she held a banner depicting a blue ribbon of water trapped behind a lock and chain. Printed above the picture in large red type was the phrase, “Fuera Mekorot”.
Ferreyra, 52, had a simple message. She wanted Mekorot, Israel’s state-run water company, out of Argentina.
Read more here.
WATCH: Is four days enough to get Palestinians in Gaza the aid they need?
WHO says it has no information about status of al-Shifa Hospital director
Muhammad Abu Salmiya, the director of Gaza’s largest hospital, was detained by Israeli forces yesterday along with five other health workers while transferring patients to the south of the enclave.
The WHO said in a statement that two of the six have been released.
“We do not have information about the wellbeing of the four remaining health staff, including the director of al-Shifa Hospital. WHO calls for their legal and human rights to be fully observed during their detention,” it said.
The agency added that the health workers were detained at an Israeli checkpoint “despite an initial agreement to only screen participants at the origination point in al-Shifa Hospital”.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza had said it wanted an explanation from the WHO and would stop coordination with the agency on evacuations until they got a report explaining what happened.
Joint @UN mission transfers critical patients from Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza, under intense fightinghttps://t.co/5I4HHtFHJW@WHOoPt pic.twitter.com/CBOykalz9X
— WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean (@WHOEMRO) November 24, 2023
Israeli man whose wife, daughters released says will not celebrate until all freed
“It is okay to rejoice, and to shed a tear, it is a human thing, but I do not celebrate and will not celebrate until the last one returns,” Yoni Asher said in a video posted on social media, as reported by Israeli daily Haaretz.
Asher’s wife, Doron Katz-Asher, 34, and his daughters, Raz and Aviv, 4 and 2, respectively, were released from Gaza today.
“There are people whose hearts are broken right now, and I want to make sure all the hostages return. The families of the hostages are not a poster or a slogan, they are real people, and from today they are my new family,” he said.
WATCH: Moment Israeli captives and Palestinians prisoners released
See the dramatic scenes when Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners were released as part of the Qatari-mediated truce deal that went into effect today:
Families of Israeli captives to be released tomorrow notified: Prime minister’s office
Netanyahu’s office says it alerted the families of the captives set to be released after it received the list of names.
Israeli media has reported the list includes 13 captives, including seven children.
The prime minister’s office did not say how many names were on the list it had received.
Southern Gaza hospital hosting twice the number of patients it was made for: WHO chief
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus shared a video showing injured Palestinians arriving in a bus and via ambulance to the European Gaza Hospital, after their transfer from al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City.
“The patients are suffering from gunshot wounds, amputations and burns,” the head of the World Health Organization said.
He added: “To meet all the health needs in Gaza, much more support is needed and above all sustained ceasefire.”
Today @WHO, @UN partners and @PalestineRCS safely transferred 22 patients and 19 companions from Al-Ahli hospital in northern #Gaza to the south.
The patients are suffering from gunshot wounds, amputations and burns. They are currently in European Gaza hospital, which is itself… pic.twitter.com/JQbjy1AF0D
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) November 24, 2023
Captives taken to Egypt before Israel to show ‘respect’: Report
The transfer of the captives via the Rafah border crossing to Egypt before their eventual transfer to Israel was based on a request from Cairo, which the Israelis were happy to agree to, reports Israel’s Kan national broadcaster.
“It was important to give the Egyptians the respect they deserve,” a political source was quoted as telling Kan. “They are an important player in the past, the present, and in the future.”
Celebrations in Nablus as detainees return home
I can tell you that this is a happy moment for the city of Nablus and for communities in the occupied West Bank.
We’ve been speaking to people here and there is a great deal of joy being expressed in the midst of an ongoing war. Seven women have been released and will be coming home to Nablus. Two children will also be returning here. We’re expecting these kinds of celebrations to carry on.
Something we’ve been hearing from every person we’ve spoken to who’s been in detention is that since the war began, they were isolated from any information … They did not know what was happening in terms of the conflict, the events in the occupied West Bank and the intensity of raids and deaths. A lot of them will be learning for the first time exactly how severe the conflict in Gaza has been.
To that end, this is about celebrating not just the return of those people that have been in detention. They say they are also celebrating tonight the four precious days of a ceasefire in Gaza. That means four fewer days of people in Gaza suffering.
More than two dozen Palestinians wounded outside Ofer Prison, Wafa says
Citing the Palestine Red Crescent, the Palestinian news agency reported that the number of Palestinians injured due to the Israeli army’s “suppression” of gatherings near the prison in the occupied West Bank rose to 31.
We earlier reported that Israeli forces fired tear gas in a bid to disperse the hundreds of people that had been gathering near Ofer Prison awaiting the release of Palestinian women and children.
Wafa said at least three injuries were from “live ammunition, four were from rubber-coated bullets, and 22 were cases of suffocation from tear gas inhalation”. Two other injuries were from “falling over”, it added.
Who are the Palestinian prisoners Israel released today?
Under the terms of the four-day truce, 39 Palestinian women and children were released from Israeli custody today.
Find out their names and more about who they are, and who might be released next, by reading our full story.
UN aid chief says hopes pause will lead to ceasefire
Griffiths made the statement during the first day of a four-day pause that is set to see 50 Israeli captives and 150 Palestinian detainees released.
“I hope that this first day of the humanitarian pause is followed by many others and that it leads to a longer-term humanitarian ceasefire – for the benefit of the people of Gaza, Israel and beyond,” Griffiths wrote on X.
I hope that this first day of the humanitarian pause is followed by many others and that it leads to a longer-term humanitarian ceasefire – for the benefit of the people of Gaza, Israel and beyond. pic.twitter.com/aWJbRU0zQc
— Martin Griffiths (@UNReliefChief) November 24, 2023
Reunion with family feels ‘like a dream’, released Palestinian prisoner says
Amani al-Hashim says she is still in shock. “I feel like I’m in a dream; I can’t believe that I’m in my house, surrounded by my family,” she told Al Jazeera from occupied East Jerusalem.
The mother of two was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2018 after Israel accused her of trying to ram her car into the Qalandiya checkpoint, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported at the time – an allegation she rejects.
“Any Palestinian who gets close to a soldier is considered to have committed a crime,” she said.
Al-Hashim’s family said Israeli police visited their home several times before her release today to warn them not to celebrate.
“They cannot steal our joy,” al-Hashim said. “They are trying to steal this moment and not allow us to celebrate, but the fact that I’m here with my family is in itself a joy.”
Biden ignores Palestinians in address
What was striking was, in response to a question as to whether the Israeli government should extend the truce, Biden, in a very hesitant manner, sort of gave the green light for Israel to continue.
That’s in keeping with the leaks we’ve been hearing from the White House over the last few days, that the US is still giving Israel that green light.
There was no mention of the Palestinian women and children being released from Israeli captivity. No mention of the Palestinian dead, only obliquely as a result of a question asked of him.
And that was also, perhaps unwittingly, in keeping with the leaks we were getting from the White House, because it was clear that when the Palestinian dead were being discussed by the crisis teams at the White House, it was mainly in terms of the optics, as to whether the US should ask Israel to bombard a little less or a bit more carefully, because it looks so bad.
Israel receives list of captives set to be released on Saturday
Israel’s Army Radio and public broadcaster reported that the government has received the list.
They did not immediately say how many names were on it.
Fifty Israeli captives are expected to be released during the four-day truce deal reached with Hamas.
Hamas releases video showing release of first Gaza captives earlier today
The two-minute video, shared on Telegram, shows the captives being loaded into Red Cross vehicles before their transfer out of the Gaza Strip.
They included elderly people and a child.
See stills from the video below:
Qatar focused on mediation role
Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majid al-Ansari told the country’s news agency that Doha had “maintained direct lines of communication with both sides and the International Red Cross”.
With the truce liable to fall through at any moment should there be delays in releasing captives or outbreaks of fighting, al-Ansari said Qatar was continuing “to monitor the situation” and “relaying information” between Israel, Hamas and the Red Cross “to ensure that any issues that occur are immediately addressed”.
The spokesperson thanked all the parties involved, and said that Qatar hoped that there would be a build-up of momentum “towards extending this pause beyond the initial four-day period”.
Palestinian journalist reunited with family
Watch the touching moment when Mohammed Qandil sees his kids for the first time in days.
He has been covering the war in Gaza from the ground.
Photos: Palestinian prisoners celebrate their freedom
While hailing captive release, Biden continues staunch support for Israel
Eliminating Hamas is a legitimate objective – that is what the US president said once again, underscoring this sort of unequivocal support of what Israel is doing.
Israel has the backing of the US for [the truce] to be temporary. Once there are a sufficient number of captives released, Israel has the full blessing of the US president to resume its war on Gaza.
The US president said very clearly that all he’s asked for is for the Israeli military to make sure that it minimises civilian casualties.
That is certainly not going to be what a lot of people in the US and even the president’s own Democratic Party – the more progressive wing – will want to hear.
What many of them are saying is that they want the president to push the Israelis for a complete ceasefire.