Israel has begun transferring prisoners to two jails ahead of their release as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal, the prison service said Saturday. Under the ceasefire deal Israel is supposed to release 250 prisoners, in exchange for the 48 remaining Israeli hostages – living and dead – held by Hamas, who are to be released within 72 hours. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.
Yesterday's developments:
- The Israeli military pulled back its forces from parts of the Gaza Strip as a US-brokered ceasefire kicked in at noon local time (09:00 GMT) on Friday.
- As guns fell silent, tens of thousands of Palestinians began to head back to their wrecked homes in the heavily destroyed and famine-hit northern part of the Strip.
- The remaining 48 Israeli hostages held in Gaza, 20 of them believed to be alive, are expected to be released on Monday.
- Israel is to free some 250 Palestinians serving prison sentences, as well as around 1,700 people seized from Gaza over the past two years and held without charge.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the next stages of the peace deal would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarised, hinting at a renewed offensive if the Palestinian militant group fails to comply.

