Thousands of Palestinians gathered in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah to celebrate the arrival of buses carrying the prisoners.

Four female Israeli soldiers held hostage by Hamas have returned to Israel after militants paraded them in front of a crowd of thousands in Gaza City.

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

Hamas released Liri Albag, Naama Levy, Karina Ariev and Daniella Gilboa on Saturday. Israel released 200 Palestinian prisoners.

The hostages are the second set to be released since the multiphase agreement came into effect, raising hopes for a lasting end to the war.

Under the terms of the fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal , fighting will be halted in Gaza for at least six weeks. Dozens of Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners will be freed, ...