Hamas releases first 7 hostages under Gaza ceasefire deal

(AP)–Hamas released seven hostages on Monday, the first to be freed as part of a ceasefire pausing two years of war that pummeled the Gaza Strip, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, and left scores of captives in militant hands.

The seven were expected be reunited with their families and undergo medical checks in Israel. Meanwhile, the Red Cross was on its way to point in southern Gaza where it is expected to take custody of second group of living hostages, according to the Israeli military.

Over the course of the day, 20 living hostages are expected to be released, as are over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Here’s the latest:

EU chief von der Leyen celebrates release of hostages

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen celebrated the release of hostages by Hamas and their return to Israel on Monday as a moment of “pure joy for those families” and “relief for the entire world,” she said in a statement.

“It means that a page can be turned. A new chapter can begin,” Von der Leyen said. “The finalisation of the agreement ending the war today in Sharm el-Sheikh will be a historical milestone.”

She said the 27-nation European Union was ready to support peace efforts by the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkey as well as reconstruction in Gaza, especially in “support on governance and for the reform of the Palestinian Authority,” she said.

Israel releases first photos of hostages arriving in Israel

Israel released the first photos of the hostages arriving in Israel and meeting Israeli troops.

From initial photos, the hostages appear less gaunt and emaciated than the hostages released in January. Family members and friends watching the releases erupted in cheers and embraced each other, breaking out in sobs at the first photo of their loved ones.

In Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, where tens of thousands gathered to watch the releases, a joyful roar erupted from the crowd as the first images of the hostages flashed on the screen.

The Government Press Office released a photo of Gali and Ziv Berman, 28-year-old twins from Kfar Aza, reuniting with each other with expressions of disbelief. According to hostages previously released, the twins were held separately from each other.

Many Israelis see release of hostages as definitive end to war

Many Israelis see the release of all the hostages as a definitive end to the war and a chance to celebrate life.

“I think what you are seeing here, the people that are celebrating in the square, something for me that is very Israeli, to see so many people gathering around to celebrate not the death of our enemies but the life of our people, of Israeli people,” said Gili Roman.

His sister Yarden Roman-Gat was freed from Gaza during the first ceasefire in November 2023 but his sister-in-law Carmel Gat was killed in captivity last year.

Roman said it’s important for people around the world not to define Israel just by the army that’s been fighting in Gaza, but as a country of people who just want to live.

“Israel is when we’re celebrating people coming back alive and that the war is over,” he said.

Hostage forum invites Trump to come to Hostages Square

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a grassroots organization that has led the protest movement to release the hostages held in Gaza, invited Trump to come to Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square as he was landing in Israel.

“President Trump, Hostages Square and hundreds of thousands of people are prepared and ready to welcome you with open arms,” the group said in a statement.

Trump making such an appearance is difficult to imagine.

There are security concerns wherever the president goes and Trump’s trip will take him to Israel and Egypt before returning to Washington without staying overnight, making for a very tight, and tightly controlled, schedule.

Still, the invitation was noteworthy, marking the group’s excitement around the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement.

Trump, Netanyahu share limo ride

Netanyahu climbed into the presidential vehicle beside Trump before the motorcade rolled away from the airport.

Trump could be seen with his arm against the limo’s window, and appeared to have a piece of paper in his hand, shortly before the line of vehicles sped away.

Trump was planning to meet with hostage families at the Knesset, or Israel’s parliament, which Trump was also set to address.

Trump greeted on the tarmac

The president emerged from the plane, pumped his fist and carefully walked down the stairs of Air Force One wearing a suit and red tie.

The military band began to play as Trump was greeted by Herzog and then Netanyahu.

There was cheering and clapping in Hostages Square as Trump was seen coming down the steps.

Trump exchanged kisses with his daughter, Ivanka, then lingered speaking to U.S. and Israeli officials, though what exactly was being said couldn’t be heard.

UN says boost in humanitarian aid to Gaza is underway

The top U.N. humanitarian official says that a scale-up of humanitarian aid to Gaza is underway.

Tom Feltcher said Monday that the U.N. and its partners distributed hundreds of thousands of hot meals and bread bundles in southern and northern Gaza. He also said cooking gas entered the strip for the first time in months.

“This is just beginning,” he wrote on social media after his arrival to Egypt’s resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to attend an international summit on Gaza.

Trump lands in Israel

Trump has landed in Israel to mark the U.S.-brokered ceasefire as Hamas started releasing Israeli hostages after two years of war.

Air Force One touched down at Ben-Gurion International Airport at 9:42 a.m. local time, after flying over Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, where tens of thousands have gathered, on way to landing.

Israel’s military takes over 7 living hostages freed by Hamas in Gaza

The military acknowledged having taken over the seven after they were freed by Hamas and given to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The seven hostages will cross into Israel and be transferred to a military base in southern Israel to be reunited with their families. They’ll then be taken by helicopter to Israeli hospitals.

Hamas earlier said it would release 20 living hostages in the Gaza Strip in exchange for over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. The exchange comes as part of the ceasefire reached in the two-year Israel-Hamas war.

Families of Palestinian prisoners await their release

Families of Palestinian prisoners gathered at a popular overlook in the occupied West Bank near Ofer Prison, where some of the 250 long-term prisoners are expected to be freed after serving up to four decades for offenses including murder and attacks.

Many Palestinians expressed hope the releases could open a path toward peace.

Jamil Jahalin, a tour guide from a Bedouin tribe outside East Jerusalem, said he was cautiously optimistic the exchange would proceed smoothly, citing the momentum surrounding it and the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump.

But his enthusiasm was tempered. Jahalin said his brother-in-law, imprisoned for 23 years, is among those set for release Monday but his family was told by Israeli security forces that he would be deported abroad.

Egypt will award Trump its highest civilian honor

Egypt will award U.S. President Donald Trump the country’s highest civilian honor, the office of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said.

Trump will be given The Order of the Nile for his efforts to stop the war in Gaza, according to a statement from the Egyptian leader’s office.

The award will recognize Trump’s “distinguished contributions to supporting peace efforts, defusing conflicts, and most recently, his pivotal role in ending the war in Gaza,” it added.

Crowd in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square cheers as the names of hostages to be released are read on local TV

The packed crowd in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv erupted in cheers as the names of the hostages to be released were read on local television. They clapped and chanted “Bring them home now!”

Some held Israeli flags with a yellow hostage ribbon on it. Others held posters with the faces of the hostages. Some clutched their chests and choked back tears.

Israel says Hamas hands over the first 7 hostages to the Red Cross

Hamas released seven hostages into the custody of the Red Cross on Monday, the first to be released as part of a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

There was no immediate information on their condition.

Hamas has said 20 living hostages will be exchanged for more than 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Families and friends of hostages broke out into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that the hostages were in the hands of the Red Cross.

Tens of thousands of Israelis are watching the transfers at public screenings across the country, with a major event being held in Tel Aviv.

Red Cross says it’s started ‘a multi-phase operation’ to oversee hostage and prisoner releases

The International Committee of the Red Cross says it has begun “a multi-phase operation” to oversee the release of hostages and prisoners as part of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

The Red Cross said it will receive hostages held in the Gaza Strip to transfer them to Israeli authorities, while also overseeing the release of prisoners to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

The Red Cross “will also facilitate the transfer of remains of the deceased so that families can bury their loved ones with dignity,” it added.

Israel says Red Cross on its way to collect several hostages held by Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip

The International Committee of the Red Cross is moving toward a site to collect several hostages held by Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said.

The Israeli military said others would be released later.

It comes as Hamas released a list of 20 living hostages it said would be released and of over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners it said Israel would release.

Hamas publishes list of more than 1,900 Palestinian prisoners it says will be released

Hamas published a list of more than 1,900 Palestinian prisoners it said will be released in the Israel-Hamas war ceasefire.

It came after the militant group offered a list of the 20 living hostages it would release as part of the deal. The International Committee of the Red Cross is expected to oversee the releases.

Hamas publishes list of 20 living hostages it will release

Hamas published a list of the 20 living hostages it will release as part of the Israel-Hamas war ceasefire.

The list of names come as hostages and Palestinian prisoners were expected to be released Monday as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s trip to Israel and Egypt to mark the ceasefire.

The International Committee of the Red Cross is expected to oversee the releases, which will include nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Israel will award Trump highest civilian honor

Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s office said he will award U.S. President Donald Trump Israel’s highest civilian honor, the “Israeli Presidential Medal of Honor,” for his efforts to bring the hostages home.

The award also recognizes Trump’s “unique contribution to Israel’s security and the well-being of its citizens, and his commitment to leading the entire region toward an era of peace and cooperation.”

Herzog will inform Trump on Monday and present the medal in the coming months “at a time and place to be determined.”

Britain’s Starmer arrives in Egypt

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has arrived in Egypt to attended a summit co-hosted by the leaders of Egypt and the United States to mark the ceasefire in Gaza.

Starmer said in a Facebook post that Britain is ready to support the reconstruction of Gaza and “we will work with partners to secure a stable future for the region.”

Abbas to participate in Egypt summit

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will participate in the summit in Egypt on Monday, according to an adviser.

Mahmoud al-Habbash, a judge and adviser to Abbas, told The Associated Press that the leader would travel to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Monday to attend the peace summit.

Tehran declines invitation to attend summit in Egypt

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency says the country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told a Cabinet meeting on Sunday that Egypt had formally invited Iran’s president to attend the gathering of world leaders in the Arab country on Monday.

Araghchi said the Islamic Republic declined the invitation, which Egypt then renewed. It wasn’t immediately clear if Iran, an ally of Hamas, responded to that second invitation.