Israel lets Palestinians return to north Gaza for 1st time since war
- Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians in Gaza are crossing the so-called Netzarim Corridor and returning home to their loved ones in the north of the Strip for the first time since Israel’s war on the enclave began.
- Israel’s military says Palestinians will be allowed to cross al-Rashid Street by foot starting at 7am (05:00 GMT) and Salah al-Din Street by vehicle from 9am (07:00 GMT).
What is happening in Tulkarem?
- An Israeli military raid is ongoing in the vicinity of Tulkarem camp in the northern occupied West Bank.
- The Palestinian Ministry of Health says two people were killed and three wounded after Israeli forces struck a vehicle near the camp in the Nur Shams camp near Tulkarem.
- Witnesses said it the vehicle was struck by a drone, which left it in flames.
- Local sources told Al Jazeera that Israeli forces were deployed in several neighbourhoods in Tulkarem and had sent military reinforcements to the city. They also said that those killed in the strike on the vehicle were members of Hamas.
- Hamas, in turn, released a statement saying the strike was a “desperate attempt to eliminate the resistance”.
- The group said “the timing of the assassination, which coincided with the occupation’s intensification of its war in the West Bank, confirms that it will not bring it security and stability”.
- Overnight, Israeli forces also raided the town of Kafr al-Labad in the Tulkarem governorate.
‘The most important thing is we returned’
Massive crowds of Gaza residents walking with their belongings along the main road running next to the coast represented a stunning reversal of the mass exodus from the north at the start of Israel’s war on the Palestinian territory.
The scenes unfolded after Israel’s army lifted its closure of Gaza’s north for the first time in the 15-month war, following a fragile ceasefire.
Yasmin Abu Amshah, a mother of three, said she walked 6km (4 miles) to reach her home in Gaza City, where she found it damaged but still habitable. She also saw her younger sister for the first time in more than a year.
“It was a long trip but a happy one. The most important thing is that we returned,” Abu Amshah said.
Hamas says 25 out of 33 Israeli captives to be released are alive: Report
Hamas has handed over a list of 25 Israeli captives who are still alive among the 33 scheduled for release to mediators.
An unnamed Hamas official told Reuters that Israel received the list from the mediators of the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Israel has long demanded to know the fate of captives still held in the enclave.
The ceasefire’s initial phase will last six weeks, with Israeli captives being exchanged for Palestinian prisoners every Saturday. Israel will also withdraw its forces from Gaza’s population centres to areas no more than 700 metres (765 yards) inside Gaza’s demarcation with Israel.
Israeli forces raid homes, arrest 20 Palestinians near Hebron: Report
The Palestinian news agency Wafa is reporting that Israeli forces have rounded up some 20 Palestinians, including four children, during a raid on the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.
The report said Israeli soldiers raided and vandalised dozens of Palestinian homes.
Separately, Wafa said Israeli forces detained seven Palestinians, including a female university student, from the town of Beit Awwa, southwest of Hebron.
