Latest news and live updates on the Gaza ceasefire deal as four female hostages are set to be released. The hostages are all Israeli soldiers.

The hostages were released in a staged handover that saw them surrounded by Hamas gunmen and crowds of civilians.

The ceasefire came into effect Sunday after an initial three-hour delay, during which almost 20 more Palestinians were killed, according to medics in the decimated Palestinian territory. Under the terms of the deal,