The bodies of four Israeli hostages were handed over by Hamas early Thursday, authorities confirmed, followed soon after by the return of another group of freed Palestinian prisoners to the occupied West Bank.
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed they had received the coffins of "four fallen hostages", and a process to formally identify them had started in Israel.
In Ramallah, AFP journalists saw a first group of more than 600 prisoners due to be freed by Israel descend from a bus before a jubilant crowd.
They were supposed to have been freed last weekend, but Israel stopped the process following outrage over elaborate ceremonies Hamas had been holding to hand over hostages, dead or alive, seized in its shock October 7, 2023 attack.
The row had threatened the first phase of a fragile Gaza ceasefire deal that went into effect on January 19.
Several of the freed Palestinians were hoisted in the air, some of them conducting interviews from the shoulders of friends or relatives.
A group of women broke into tears as they gathered around one released prisoner, and a child held aloft made peace signs with both hands.
Earlier, Hamas said the return of the four Israeli bodies would take place in private "to prevent the occupation from finding any pretext for delay or obstruction".
Israeli media identified them as Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, Itzik Elgarat and Shlomo Mansour.
With AFP
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