Israel-Hamas Six Week Ceasefire...I'm cheering for the release of the three hostages.

[Anchor]
Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas entered a six-week cease-fire 471 days after the war.

As agreed, the two sides will first exchange three hostages and 90 inmates, release additional prisoners every week, and negotiate an end to the war.

Correspondent Jo Su-hyun of London reports.

[Reporter]
An Israeli military convoy carrying three female hostages held by Hamas crosses the border.

As the ceasefire in Gaza took effect on the morning of the 19th local time, the first hostage release took place.

The family members who watched the situation in real-time with anxiety cheered in unison.

On the same day, Israel also decided to hand over 90 Palestinian prisoners, including women and teenagers, to Hamas.

The two sides agreed to exchange 33 hostages and 737 detainees during the 42-day first phase of the cease-fire.

As a result, additional hostages and prisoners will be released every Saturday in the future, and discussions on the second and third phases will begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire.

The Israeli military believes 94 hostages remain in Gaza, 34 of them dead.

[Daniel Hagari / Israeli military chief spokesman: Our mission is not over until all hostages return home]

The international community, including the United States and Europe, welcomed the cease-fire in 471 days and urged all parties to abide by the agreement.

[Joe Biden / U.S. President: The Gaza truce and release of hostages are the result of our months of effective principles-based policies]

A war of nerves began on the first day, with Israel resuming airstrikes and delaying the entry into force of the ceasefire by three hours due to Hamas' failure to hand over the previously promised "release hostage list" on time.

Hamas says it is ready to implement the agreement and warns that the safe return of the hostages depends on Israel's compliance with the agreement.

I'm Jo Suhyun of YTN in London.