Mediator Qatar confirms Gaza ceasefire begins

Mediator Qatar on Sunday confirmed the start of a truce between Israel and Hamas and said some of the initial three hostages to be freed hold foreign citizenship.

"We confirm that the names of the three hostages who will be released today have been handed over to the Israeli side. They are three Israeli citizens, one of whom holds Romanian citizenship and the other British citizenship. Thus, the ceasefire has begun," Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a statement.