British-Israeli among first hostages to be released by Hamas today as Gaza ceasefire begins

The first hostages are set to be released by Hamas today as part of the ceasefire deal

The 28-year-old will be released along with Romi Gonen, 24, and Doron Steinbreche, 31, in return for Palestinian prisoners.

On Sunday morning, Hamas released the names of the three women, who it said would be the first to be freed as part of the ceasefire agreement with Israel.

The ceasefire had been due to start at from 08:30am local time, but was delayed until Hamas released the names of the hostages to be handed over. The ceasefire eventually came into force at 11:15am local time when Hamas handed over the list of hostages it would set free.

Hamas said the delay was because of "technical field reasons."

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said fighting would continue until the list of hostages was released, and Israeli strikes continued on Sunday morning. At least 19 people were killed in these strikes, according to the Hamas-run civil defence agency.

The release of the first three hostages is set to happen sometime after 16:00 local time (14:00 GMT) today.

Reacting to the news that Emily would be freed today, a source close to the Damari family told the BBC: "All Emily’s mum Mandy wants to do is hug Emily. But she won’t believe it until she sees it. It’s been a torturous 471 days, but a particularly torturous 24 hours.

"Until she’s out and Mandy can actually see that she’s out ... It hasn’t happened until it happens. It’s not done until it’s done. And there’s a long road ahead.

"They’ve no idea what condition they are in, and there are other hostages who need to be released and need humanitarian aid to be kept alive. It’s a long, long road ahead."

They added that the family are "grateful for all the love and support" they have received but are "pleading with people" to respect their privacy at this "extremely sensitive time."

Israel's official X account shared the names of the first 33 hostages who are expected to be released in the first stage of the ceasefire agreement.

In return for the hostages, Israel is expected to release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Emily was taken hostage from her home on Kibbutz Kfar Aza on 7 October 2023 during Hamas' attack on Israel. About 1,200 people were killed in the attack and some 251 hostages were taken back to Gaza.

Since then, Israel has launched a massive offensive on Gaza, during which more than 46,800 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

After 15 months of war, a ceasefire deal was finally agreed between the Israeli government and Hamas on Wednesday.

The deal is made up of three stages. The first is a six-week phase when Hamas will release the 33 hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, whilst Israeli forces will withdraw to the east away from Gaza. This will allow displaced Palestinians to start returning to their homes and hundreds of aid lorries will be allowed into the territory each day.

Negotiations for the second phase are due to start on the 16th day. This should see the remaining hostages released, a full Israeli troop withdrawal and a return to "sustainable calm."

The third and final stage involves the return of any remaining hostages' bodies and the start of the rebuilding process in Gaza.