GAZA, DOHA, CAIRO (Agencies)

A ceasefire in the Gaza Strip came into effect on Sunday, marking the start of its first phase, which will last for 42 days. This follows 15 months of Israeli aggression on the region. The United Nations has also announced that the first aid convoys have entered Gaza.

“A ceasefire finally came into effect in Gaza at 11:15 today. First trucks of supplies started entering just 15mins later. A massive effort has been underway over the past days from humanitarian partners to load and prepare to distribute a surge of aid across all of Gaza,” Head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OCHAoPt), said on X.

Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari in a statement on X, stated, “We confirm that the names of the three hostages who will be released today have been handed over to the Israeli side. They are three Israeli citizens, one of whom holds Romanian citizenship and the other British citizenship. Thus, the ceasefire has begun.”

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip has martyred at least 46,913 Palestinians and injured 110,750 others since 7 October 2023.