The ceasefire continues to hold for a third day in Gaza ahead of the release of hostages and U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit.
Thousands of Palestinians have continued to travel north towards Gaza City in hopes the ceasefire will end the war.
This comes as the Israeli government revealed that it expects all living hostages held in Gaza to be released on Monday and that it is preparing for the release of around 2,000 Palestinian detainees. This includes 250 Palestinians serving life sentences.
“We are expecting all 20 of our living hostages to be released together at one time to the Red Cross and transported among six to eight vehicles,” said the Israeli government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian.
The hostages will be driven to a military base to their families or to hospitals for medical care, and the remains of deceased hostages are expected to be sent to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification.
Al Jazeera were told that living hostages have been moved to three locations in the enclave ahead of their transfer to Red Cross officials.
There are currently 48 hostages in Gaza, with 20 believed to be alive.
This is the first part of Trump’s 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza. While a ceasefire has been in place since Friday, further negotiations are needed before a long-lasting end to the war is established.
The U.S. President is due to arrive in Israel to address the Knesset before travelling to Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt for a world leaders’ summit on ending the war in Gaza.
