Qatar has intervened in the war between Israel and Hamas, and brokered the release of 13 hostages from Gaza.
A four-day truce agreed by Israel and Hamas is due to begin at 7 am on Friday, mediator, Qatar, said.
The beginning of the four-day truce on Friday will mark the first pause in fighting in nearly seven weeks of war.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid al-Ansari said the first batch of 13 civilian hostages held in the Gaza Strip would be released at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. All of the 13 are women and children.
“And those hostages who are from the same families will be put together within the same batch.
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“Obviously, every day will include a number of civilians, as agreed, to total 50 within the four days,” the official said.
The deal, announced by Qatar on Wednesday, involves a four-day pause in fighting between both sides to let desperately needed aid flow into Gaza.
It also foresees the release in stages of 100 hostages from Gaza and 300 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
“We have just finished with all the communication with all parties in order to ascertain the lists of those civilians who will be freed as a result of the deal agreed upon by both parties,” al-Ansari said at a news conference in Doha.
Also, the official declined to say how many Palestinians in Israeli prisons will be released on Friday.
