He described the release of 24 hostages from Gaza, including 13 Israeli nationals, as "a great relief," but added that "our hearts are with the hostages who are still being held in Gaza."
Notably, Hamas has agreed to release some 50 hostages, which include women and children over the four days of the truce with Israel. The released hostages are only a small group out of some 240 people held hostage by Hamas terrorists since October 7, when Hamas launched an attack on Israe
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it completed its operational assessment of the cease-fire lines. Friday morning the IDF forces destroyed the terrorist tunnel that was exposed in Shifa Hospital.
The four-day cease-fire between Israel and the militant group Hamas will commence today, but experts say the short pause in fighting will resume with intensity for at least two months, The Times of Israel has reported.
The death toll in Gaza from the Israeli offensive since October 7 has risen to 14,854, with 5,850 children among the casualties, CNN reported, citing Hamas authorities in the Strip.
The IDF said that over 13,000 shells were fired at Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets, hundreds of terrorists were eliminated, and anti-tank squads were thwarted on their way to fire on Israeli forces in Gaza over the past month by the 454th Brigade.
Israeli military forces continued striking Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip on Thursday morning ahead of an imminent ceasefire. Although Israel agreed to a temporary ceasefire and partial prisoner exchange on Wednesday morning, details are still being finalized.
During the IDF's activities in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, approximately 300 Hamas terrorist targets were attacked from the air, including operational headquarters, underground combat tunnels, IED warehouses, IED production sites and anti-tank launch sites.
Citing the allegations that hospitals in Gaza Strip are being used as 'terror bases', the Israel Defense Forces put forth a question to the international community: what will it do to prevent the hospitals from being used by Hamas for its objectives.
The Yahalom special forces unit of the Combat Engineering Corps has played a significant role in uncovering and destroying these shafts using various methods.