Families on both sides were grappling with the lack of clarity over how the release would occur.
“We don’t know who will come out because Hamas will release every evening the names of those who will come out the next day,” said Gilad Korngold, whose son and daughter-in-law are being held in Gaza along with two of his men. Children and other relatives.
Israel’s list of eligible Palestinian prisoners includes 123 detainees under the age of 18 and 33 women, among them Shrauk Dwayyat, who was convicted of attempted murder in a knife attack in 2015.
Their mother, Samira Dwayyat, said, “I was hoping she would come to an agreement,” but added that her relief was tempered by the “huge pain in my heart” over the dead children in Gaza.
In Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, war-weary displaced Palestinians were skeptical about the Israel-Hamas agreement.
“What ceasefire are they talking about? We don’t need a ceasefire just to get aid. We want to go home,” said Messara Asbagh, who fled northern Gaza for a hospital in what is now Provides shelter to approximately 35,000 displaced people.
Thousands of airstrikes have devastated large parts of Gaza and left the area facing shortages of food, water and fuel.
For now, Israel appears to be stepping up its offensive into northern Gaza, with witnesses reporting attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital and nearby homes.
Medical workers treated bloodied, dust-covered survivors, while other residents fled through debris-filled streets to safety.
At Gaza’s largest hospital, al-Shifa, Israeli soldiers led journalists to a tunnel shaft they said was part of a vast underground network that Hamas uses for military purposes – a claim Hamas denies .
In Tel Aviv Plaza, now known as Hostages Square, Doron Klein, 49, said he was “hopeful” that the hostage children would come home, but said the deal was a “risk” to the military operation. can cause.
“I think everyone’s fear is that this will give Hamas time to regroup and we will have to pay the price with more soldiers killed,” he said.