This live blog on Israel's war on Gaza has concluded. Make sure to follow us for the latest news on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
A total of 39 Palestinians detained by Israel were released from prison on Sunday as part of the pause in fighting in Gaza.
Qatar, with the support of the United States and Egypt, engaged in weeks of intense negotiations to secure the four-day truce between Israel and Hamas, which began Friday after nearly seven weeks of war that left close to 15,000 killed by brutal Israeli bombing.
As part of agreed commitments, "39 Palestinian civilians will be released today in exchange for the release of 13 Israeli detainees from Gaza, in addition to a detainee holding Russian citizenship and 3 Thais," Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said on social media platform X.
Israel's army separately said 13 of the released hostages were back on Israeli territory, and another four were on their way to Egypt.
Since Friday, 78 Palestinian women and child prisoners have been released.
The truce - which has now entered its third day - has also allowed for many Gazans to return to their homes. However, several found their houses had been turned to rubble as they brace for survival over the winter period.
The United Nations said the pause enabled it to scale up the delivery of food, water, and medicine to the largest volume since the resumption of humanitarian aid convoys on October 21. It was also able to deliver 129,000 litres (34,078 gallons) of fuel - just over 10 percent of the daily pre-war volume - as well as cooking gas, a first time since the war began.
Egypt has said that it received positive feedback from both sides about the idea of extending the truce for a day or two and releasing more hostages and prisoners.
"It's only a start, but so far it's gone well," US President Joe Biden told reporters Friday, adding "the chances are real" for extending the truce.
Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi called for "a permanent ceasefire and a complete end to this aggression".
But Israeli armed forces chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said Saturday that the war to eliminate Hamas would continue.
"We will return immediately at the end of the ceasefire to attack Gaza," Halevi said.
"We will also do this in order to dismantle Hamas, also to create a great deal of pressure to return as quickly as possible and as many abductees as possible, every last one of them."
Israel has gone on to violate the ceasefire on multiple occasions, including sections surrounding the entrance of aid into the Gaza.
Several journalists and residents of Gaza have said that war planes have flown across the territory, where Israeli forces have killed close to 15,000 Palestinians since the war began on 7 October.
Featured images: Getty