Palestinians released to cheers as three Israeli hostages return home — as it happened

Palestinian journalist Bushra al-Tawil was among the first batch of prisoners to be released.

She was jailed in Israel in March 2024.

Al-Tawil began her journey at 3am the day before, when she was taken from her prison to another nearer the separation wall.

There, she was grouped with other inmates awaiting movement.

"The wait was extremely hard. But thank God, we were certain that at any moment we would be released," she said.

Al-Tawil had only learned she would be freed from other inmates who had attended a hearing.

"The lawyers told them the (ceasefire) deal had been announced and was in the implementation phase," said Tawil, whose father is also in an Israeli jail.

"I was worried about him. He is still a prisoner, but I just received good news that he will be released as part of this deal."

Reporting with AFP

Journalist and former Middle East correspondent Nicole Johnston has spoken to the ABC, sharing what she knows about the people released from the Israeli prison in the West Bank.

She said that Palestinian leader Khalida Jarrar was one of the more significant "big figures" released.

Jarrar is the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

"This is a group defined as a terrorist organisation by the European Union and the United States, but she is seen very differently inside the Palestinian territories, though. She is regarded as a leader, not of the militant wing, but of the political wing."

Johnston speaks more on Jarrar and the other prisoners here:

Pro-Palestine supporters have gathered in Greenacre in Sydney's west to celebrate the ceasefire in Gaza.

Watch here:

Khalida Jarrar, a former parliamentarian and leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) is among the Palestinian prisoners to be freed.

ActionAid country director Jamil Sawalmeh told the ABC earlier today the ceasefire was "a sigh of relief for the people of Gaza" who have been "trying to dodge the next missile or the next attack for the past 15 months".

"We are definitely looking forward now to intensify [sic] our humanitarian efforts and work in Gaza to support the people who have been suffering for 15 months, non-stop, deprived from everything, from basic life needs to medical services, to even food and basic supplies," he told News Breakfast's Bridget Brennan.

However, he said Gazans coming to terms with the scale of the destruction as they return to their neighbourhoods will present a new challenge in and of itself.

"Now people will have the space to recognise what happened in Gaza — and this of course is going to open a new world of agony and pain for them," he said.

It's now getting close to 4am in Gaza and Israel as the first night of the ceasefire draws to an end. If you're just joining us, here's a quick summary of the day's events:

• Three Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas and reunited with their families in Tel Aviv
• In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have been released from Israeli jails in the West Bank and welcomed by crowds and their families
• Palestinians in Gaza have begun returning home to destruction and devastation as they seek out what is left of their houses and neighbourhoods
• Aid trucks have begun flowing via two border crossings into Gaza to provide vital food and supplies to the population of 2 million, most of whom are severely food insecure

Crowds of people in the West Bank have cheered as more prisoners and detainees reunited with their families as part of the ceasefire and hostage deal.

The Palestinian cohort, largely made up of women, was released early on Monday morning, local time, and they were met by family members who clapped and cried as they left Red Cross buses.

While 90 Palestinians are returning to their homes in the West Bank following their release from Israeli prisons, Gaza residents have also been making their way back home — but the reception waiting for them is vastly different.

Shadi Jomaa Abu Sheha used the cover of the ceasefire to return to his house in Nuseirat, in central Gaza, on Sunday afternoon.

He found it almost completely destroyed.

"The halting of the bloodshed is an indescribable feeling ... I thank God that I survived this war safely," he said.

"However, when we returned to our homes we found nothing but ruin and destruction. I cannot describe the scene in words.

"I built this house piece by piece, and when I returned to it, I didn't find it as I knew it … I don't see my home. I only see destruction."

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates 92 per cent of all housing in the Gaza Strip has been destroyed or damaged since Israel's bombardment of the territory began, and 1,875,000 people are in need of emergency shelter.

Nine-year-old Ella Elyakim, an Israeli girl who was kidnapped with her sister during the October 7 attack then released the following month as part of a deal between Hamas and Israel, has drawn a picture welcoming home the three freed hostages.

At least one of the women released today was held captive alongside her, according to the Bring Them Home Now campaign, which represents the families and friends of those held hostage by Hamas.

Ella's painting features a message written in Hebrew that says "Welcome home, Doron, Romi and Emily."

A video released by the campaign shows the former hostage writing on a series of posters featuring the young women's pictures — adding the words "is home" below each of their names.

The first group of Palestinians released from Ramallah's Ofer Prison have been treated to a heroes' welcome as they emerge from buses operated by the Red Cross to a mass of cheering people.

Some of the young men look shocked as they're embraced by the crowd, while others raise their hands in celebration as they're carried on supporters' shoulders.

 We reported last night that aid trucks had returned to Gaza via the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing, however the border crossing from Egypt into Rafah — once a vital source of food and aid — remained closed.

That's since changed, with traffic at the crossing now surging as NGOs and UN agencies aim to boost the number of food and supply trucks coming through to 600 a day.

ABC Middle East correspondent Eric Tlozek filed this report.

Crowds of Palestinians waiting outside Ramallah's Ofer Prison have gathered around — and on top of — the Red Cross buses transporting 78 of the prisoners and detainees freed by Israel.

Several of those on top of the buses are waving Hamas flags.

Young men and women inside the buses can also be seen moving to the front and making victory or peace signs to the crowd and members of the media.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has also commented on the release of the three Israeli hostages while holding a press conference at a synagogue in Sydney this morning.

"It doesn't even bear thinking what they've been through," he says.

On the ceasefire agreement, the opposition leader said he "sincerely" hoped it would hold.

"It's wonderful that three people have been released back to their families and back to their country," he says.

"But our thoughts and prayers today must continue for those who are still held in captivity, those who are still suffering because of the attacks on October 7, those who survived the attacks and those who are living with the mental and physical scars."

Seventy-eight of the 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees released just now are West Bank residents who were set free at the Beitunia checkpoint near Ramallah's Ofer Prison, according to media reports.

CNN's Nada Bashir, who is on the ground outside the prison, says some people waiting outside the prison — including members of the media — were dispersed by Israeli security forces in the lead-up to the release.

Large white buses carrying the detainees, driven by the Red Cross, then exited the prison's gates, as celebratory fireworks erupted overhead.

The remaining 12 prisoners and detainees are residents of East Jerusalem, and had already been driven to the city and released at the Russian Compound detention centre by the time their release was announced.

Sixty-nine of those released were women, according to earlier statements from the prison service.

Of the 21 men released, eight were minors, and 12 were men convicted of relatively minor offences such as incitement or disorderly conduct, according to Israeli media reports.

However, a list provided by the Palestinian Authority's Commission for Prisoners' Affairs stated that all of those released were women or minors.

Israel's prison service now says the 90 prisoners and detainees have been released.

We'll bring you updates as they happen.

If you're wondering why we've been covering the release of the three Israeli hostages but are yet to bring you news of the 90 Palestinian prisoners being released in exchange, it's because that release hasn't happened yet.

Israel's prison service is reportedly managing the handover, which was expected to happen earlier today, but there's been no news since we heard the prisoners were being bused to Ramallah.

Israel news site Ynet reports officials involved in the release are blaming the Red Cross for the delay, saying it's in order to make it look like Israel isn't holding up its end of the bargain.

Meanwhile, crowds have gathered near Ramallah's Ofer prison, one of the facilities where the prisoners due to be released today are being held.

Some of those gathered are waving Hamas flags, while others nearby have begun creating roadblocks to prevent the Israeli army from entering their towns.

CNN is reporting that crowds gathered outside the prison have been tear-gassed by Israeli drones, with Israeli police saying those targeted had been throwing stones at security forces.

"In reponse, the forces utilised crowd control measures to restore order and disperse the gathering," police said.

Israel is due to release 69 women and 21 teenage boys from prison today as part of the ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong is in Washington to attend Donald Trump's inauguration (we're also live blogging the lead-up to that event here), where she was asked about the ceasefire deal.

Senator Wong, who met with families of the hostages while on a visit to Israel last year, welcomed the release of the first three hostages.

"Those were very moving meetings. They're very moving discussions," she said.

"Obviously, after so many days, to see the release of some hostages is incredibly moving, and we hope they are able to recover, and our thoughts are with the remaining hostages."

Asked about the next steps, she said the ceasefire deal had been worked on by both the Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration, and she hoped that work continued.

"It is the potential pathway to peace," she says.

"Of course, it's difficult. We've seen that because there have been so many false starts in terms of the ceasefire discussions," she said.

"There is the opportunity in the Middle East now for the Trump administration to take forward an agenda around greater stability and normalising, particularly given the weakened position of Iran, and that is a good thing for security in the region."

The Palestinian Authority in Ramallah — the de facto Palestinian government in the West Bank, controlled by Hamas rival Fatah — has released a statement that appears to be aimed at both Israel and Hamas, reaffirming its position that it holds "full legal and political authority over the Gaza Strip" as well as the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories.

The statement also rejects "any attempts to detach or carve up any part of Gaza or approve the forced expulsion of any Palestinian from their homeland".

"The Palestinian Government, under President [Mahmoud] Abbas's directives, has completed all preparations to assume full responsibilities in Gaza and … its administrative and security personnel are fully prepared to carry out their tasks in order to alleviate the suffering inflicted on the Gaza population," the statement says.

The director of Tel Hashomer Hospital in Ramat Gan, where the three released hostages are being cared for, says the hostages' physical condition is good enough that they can spend several hours with their families before the focus turns to medical issues.

"Their condition allows us to focus on the important thing, which is reuniting [them] with their families, and to postpone delving into medical issues for a few hours," she told the Times of Israel.

"We are closely accompanying them and their families."