Israel-Palestine live: Israel says 39 more Palestinians freed under truce deal

Many protesters have gathered in central London calling for a total ceasefire and end to the bombing of Gaza.

Thousands are expected to turn up to the march, where demonstrators are waving Palestinian flags and chanting “free free Palestine.”
 

After seven weeks of Israeli bombardment on Gaza, many are now returning home to inspect the damage and check up on loved ones during a four-day temporary truce.

"Where will we live? Where will we go? We are trying to collect bits of wood to build a tent to shelter us, but to no avail. There is nothing to shelter a family," Tahani al-Najjar told Reuters, as she removed rubble and twisted metal out of the way.

Najjar, a 58-year-old mother of five from Khan Younis in the south of the enclave, said Israel's military had also levelled her house in two previous conflicts in 2008 and 2014.

She pulled several intact cups from the ruins, where a bicycle and dust-caked clothes lay amid the debris. "We will rebuild again," she said.

For the 2.3 million people who live in the Gaza Strip, the pause in the constant air and artillery strikes has offered a first chance to safely move around and return to their homes.

Hazem al-Asad, a member of the Houthis’ political bureau, posted an image of an Israeli-owned ship alight on Saturday.

The ship, owned by an Israeli billionaire,  was targeted by a triangle-shaped, bomb-carrying Shahed-136 drone while in international waters in the Indian Ocean. 

A US Defence official said earlier today that it was attacked by an Iranian drone on Friday. 

According to the official, the drone exploded, causing damage to the ship but not wounding any of its crew, who added that they are monitoring the situation. 

A Qatari delegation arrived in Israel early on Saturday, according to Haaretz.

A diplomat said the delegation was part of a team visiting to ensure the set captive-prisoner release deal went ahead smoothly and as planned.

"The team arrived for a visit designed to coordinate between the parties in the field and their counterparts in Doha to ensure that the deal continues to progress smoothly and to discuss more details about the ongoing deal," the diplomat said. 

Both Egypt and Israel have received a list from Hamas on the 14 captives held in Gaza which are set to be released today, according to security sources. 

Meanwhile, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Association, 42 Palestinian prisoners will be released today.

Wounded Palestinians in Gaza have been forced to walk on foot to their homes and to seek medical treatment during the temporary truce amid restrictions on movement of ambulances and people. 

In one video shared online, a heavily wounded Palestinian man is seen heading to the southern portion of the strip on foot. 

Egypt has received a list from Hamas on the 14 hostages held in Gaza which are set to be released today, according to security sources, Reuters reported.

A Qatari officials' aeroplane landed in Israel on Saturday morning, according to Israeli media. 

The event comes before 14 Israeli captives held in Gaza are set to be released. 
 

According to the Palestinian Prisoners Association, 42 Palestinian prisoners will be released today.

Israeli authorities informed the association earlier today, but did not give a specific time. 

The list of prisoners to be released includes 18 women and 24 minors. 

The release will happen via Ofer prison, just outside Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
 

On the second day of the temporary truce, more hostages held in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners are expected to be released, according to AFP, citing Israeli officials. 

The news agency stated that 14 hostages held in Gaza will be released on Saturday in exchange for 42 Palestinian prisoners. 
 

An Israeli-owned ship in the Indian Ocean was attacked by a suspected Iranian drone on Friday, according to a US defence official.

The official spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity and said that the ship, owned by an Israeli billionaire, was targeted by a triangle-shaped, bomb-carrying Shahed-136 drone while in international waters.

The drone exploded, causing damage to the ship but not wounding any of its crew, according to the official, who added that they were monitoring the situation. 

The Lebanese channel al-Mayadeen stated that an Israeli ship had been targeted in the Indian Ocean, which was confirmed in Iranian media. 

The attack reportedly took place just a few hours before the temporary truce started.  

Palestinian prisoner Marah Bakeer embraced her mother on Friday following a hostage-prisoner swap deal that was agreed between Israel and Hamas.

Bakeer's celebrations were somewhat subdued as she was informed that she would not be allowed to celebrate, and there was a heavy Israeli police presence.

Bakeer, 24, hugged her mother who was elated to see her again. 

"I told you Marah is beautiful," her mother told reporters. 

Israel has released 39 women and children prisoners after Hamas freed 13 civilian captives under a Qatar-mediated deal that includes a four-day truce in Gaza.

Palestinians gathered at key points around occupied West Bank cities to mark the release of the prisoners on Friday evening. 

The Palestinian Red Crescent announced on Saturday that they received 196 trucks of aid through the Rafah crossing on Friday.

The trucks contained medical supplies and medicine, as well as hospital beds, food and water. 

Experts maintain that the aid that has entered Gaza still does not meet the significant needs, and is below the levels of aid entering Gaza before the start of the war on 7 October. 

The brief respite the four-day temporary truce is providing people in Gaza is being used to check up on surviving family members and removing unexploded bombs, local media reported on Saturday.

Expert teams have been visiting residential areas to remove any unexploded bombs or missiles that could cause further harm. 

Meanwhile, survivors went back to their homes to check on the damage, many finding total destruction. 

Hostages released by Hamas on Friday as part of a temporary truce deal have been described as being ‘in good medical condition,’ according to Israeli media. 

The Schneider Children's Medical Center, which is treating some of the freed hostages, issued a statement early on Saturday saying that the our women and four children were in a good state. 

The other five women who were freed, are being treated at the Wolfson Medical Center, who said that they were ‘stable’ and have been ‘embraced by their families.’
 

Good morning MEE readers. The second day of the temporary truce in Gaza has begun this morning.

The first day was filled with a mix of emotions for Palestinians in the besieged enclave. For many, the absence of Israeli fighter jets bombing on a daily basis was a beautiful sound. The brief respite, however, also allowed many to view the full scale of the carnage left by Israel's bombardment.

Palestinians used the cessation of fighting to complete ordinary tasks: going to the store, walking on the open streets, and meeting with family and friends.

Other tasks weren't so ordinary, like returning home to salvage what remained of a destroyed home or recovering the body of a relative killed in the war.

While the past few hours have been the quietest period in the duration of the current war, here is some stuff you may have missed if you're just tuning in:

• In his first full interview since becoming UK foreign secretary, David Cameron told the BBC that Israel will not be secure until there is "long-term safety, security and stability" for Palestinians

• US President Joe Biden has said that he expects Americans to be released as a part of the agreement struck between Israel and Hamas

• Thailand's foreign ministry said on Saturday that 20 Thai nationals were still being held by Hamas

• Two hundred trucks were dispatched from Nitzana to the Rafah crossing and 137 trucks of goods were offloaded by the Unrwa reception point in Gaza

• Nearly 130,000 litres of fuel and four trucks carrying cooking gas crossed into Gaza

• Israel’s military said in a Telegram post on Saturday that it shot down a surface-to-air missile fired from Lebanese territory

• Israeli forces continued their weeks-long campaign of arresting Palestinians in the occupied West Bank