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Palestinians will “rise again” to rebuild Gaza, Hamas has said, as a ceasefire brings an end to 15 months of a destructive war which has left the enclave in ruins.
“Gaza, with its great people and its resilience, will rise again to rebuild what the occupation has destroyed and continue on the path of steadfastness until the occupation is defeated,” the Palestinian militant group said in a statement on the second day of a momentous ceasefire.
“Over the course of 471 days, the systematic crimes of the occupation have failed to dissuade our people and their valiant resistance from clinging to the land and confronting the aggression.”
Meanwhile, the British woman who was among the first Israeli hostages freed said she has “returned to my beloved life” in the first comments she has made since her release.
After spending 471 days in captivity, moving footage showed 28-year-old Emily Damari joyfully reuniting with her family as she and two other hostages – Doron Steinbrecher, 31, and Romi Gonen, 24 – were handed over to the military.
The trio’s release comes as 90 Palestinian prisoners were freed from Israeli jails under the truce. The released detainees – all of whom were women or teenagers, aged as young as 15 – were embraced in hugs as they posed for tearful pictures.
A search is underway for as many as 10,000 Palestinians believed trapped under rubble, the Palestinian Emergency Services has said.
Israeli soldier killed in West Bank
The Israeli military has said a soldier has been killed and another seriously wounded in the West Bank.
The military declined to provide further details. Israeli media reported Monday that the soldiers’ vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in the northern West Bank overnight.
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 16:45
Hezbollah praises Gaza ceasefire as victory for Palestinian people
The militant Hezbollah movement has praised the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip as a victory for the Palestinian people.
Hezbollah said in a statement issued on Monday that it was a partner in the Palestinian “victory,” adding that the Lebanese group opened a front with Israel in which it paid a high price on top of losing its top commanders, including leader Hassan Nasrallah, and thousands of supporters.
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 16:33
Lammy tells Commons it was ‘deeply moving’ to see pictures of Briton’s reunion with her mother after release
UK foreign secretary David Lammy has said it was “deeply moving” to see pictures of British-Israeli Emily Damari being reunited with her mother after she was released from Hamas’ captivity.
Speaking ahead of making a Commons statement on Ukraine, Mr Lammy told MPs: “I want to begin by welcoming the release of Emily Damari.
“After 471 days of captivity, she has been brought home. It was deeply moving to see those pictures of Emily and her mother Mandy reunited. I pay tribute once again to all those who campaigned so tirelessly for this moment.
“The Government will continue to work closely with our partners to secure the release of all the hostages, to get aid into Gaza, and to see this deal implemented in full.”
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 16:15
Longest-serving Palestinian inmate among prisoners to be deported under swap
The longest-serving Palestinian inmate in Israeli jail, revered by militants as the “dean” of their prisoners, is among more than 200 Palestinians set to be deported under the Gaza ceasefire and hostages-for-prisoners swap.
Nael Barghouti, 67, has spent 44 years incarcerated by Israel, more than any other Palestinian. Jailed in 1978 for killing an Israeli bus driver, he was freed in 2011 in a previous swap but re-arrested three years later and held ever since.
Israel has said that Palestinians who have been convicted of killing Israelis must be permanently deported if they are freed under the Gaza ceasefire agreement, and will not be allowed to return to homes in the occupied West Bank.
Barghouti is one of 217 prisoners on a list from the Israeli justice ministry, cited by the Palestinian prisoners’ association, of those to be sent abroad.
His wife Eman Nafe, herself a former prisoner who spent 10 years in Israeli jail accused of plotting a suicide attack, said she thought he might reject release if it meant being sent abroad: “I am sure he will refuse this,” she told Reuters.
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 15:50
UN chief says 630 aid trucks entered Gaza on first day of ceasefire
More than 630 humanitarian aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip on Sunday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council, with at least 300 of those trucks going to the enclave’s north, where the UN says famine looms.
The trucks entered on the first day of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas.
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 15:33
Who was released on Sunday
The first three hostages held by Hamas to be released were all women: Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari.
In exchange, 90 Palestinians were released from Israeli detention: 69 women and 21 teenage boys.
Many of the prisoners released on the first day of the ceasefire were recently detained by Israel and had not been tried or convicted.
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 15:15
Two killed including a child in Rafah, say Palestinian medics
Two people including a child have been killed in Rafah by Israeli forces, Wafa news agency cited medics as saying.
The two Palestinians were killed by Israeli snipers in the central and southern areas of Rafah city, in the southern Gaza Strip, the agency reported. Eight citizens, including children, were also injured in Rafah.
It comes despite a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip coming into effect on Sunday.
Alex Croft20 January 2025 15:11
In pictures: Attention starts to shift to rebuilding of Gaza after devastating 15 months of conflict
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 15:00
A year of war in Gaza: A timeline of key moments as ceasefire deal agreed
It took effect on Sunday and included the release of hostages still held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. Three hostages held by Hamas have now been released, while 90 Paletinians held in Israeli jails were freed hours later.
The US, Egypt and Qatar have repeatedly tried to secure a ceasefire ever since the conflict began on 7 October 2023, with both Israel and Hamas rejecting multiple draft proposals.
Here, The Independent takes a look at some of the most significant moments of the war since it began:
Tara Cobham20 January 2025 14:45
