Truce between Israel and Hamas begins with humanitarian aid and release of prisoners and hostages

Sunday, January 19, 2025, begins to go down in history as the day on which the long-awaited truce was put into practice after 15 months of ferocious attacks by Israel against the population of the Gaza Strip, which resulted in a true massacre. On this date, the ceasefire negotiated between Israel and Hamas comes into force, with the help of international mediators.

The release of three Israeli women — Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damar — is expected this Sunday, out of a total of 33 hostages to be released in the first few days, in exchange for the release of 30 Palestinian prisoners and the withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Trucks with supplies are also already arriving, 200 in total, for humanitarian aid to the population of Gaza, which has suffered serious health problems, malnutrition and poverty since Benjamin Netanyahu’s Army began the attacks on October 7, 2023. after action by Hamas that left 1,200 Israelis dead.

Find out more: Israel approves ceasefire in Gaza; Palestinian hostages and prisoners must be released

Since then, at least 48,000 people have been killed in Gaza — a number considered underestimated by experts —, the majority of them children, women and the elderly, and more than 110,000 have been injured.

In the region, international agencies have also shown the displacement of hundreds of Palestinians, who return to their places of residence to try to resume their lives, even after the almost complete destruction of the region.

The Israeli attacks left a trail of blood and rubble and, as a result, Gaza’s infrastructure, as well as basic service facilities such as hospitals and schools, were devastated.

Pope Francis spoke about the truce and said that “both Israelis and Palestinians need clear signs of hope. I hope that the political authorities of both, with the help of the international community, can reach the right two-state solution. May everyone say yes to dialogue, yes to reconciliation, yes to peace.”

Throughout the day, the Red Portal will update the status of the first steps of the ceasefire.

With agencies