Israel identified the remains of child hostages but said another body from Hamas was not their mother as claimed. And near Tel Aviv, explosions hit threes buses, but no injuries were reported.

Today's release is the first time Hamas has handed over the bodies of hostages during the war, although several have been recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza and returned to Israel.

Hamas says it has agreed to Israel's request to speed up release of Israeli hostages, including two men held around a decade. The bodies of members of a young family are among those it will hand over.

Hamas says it will release three hostages on Saturday, resolving a dispute with Israel that threatened to derail the ceasefire. In exchange, Israel will free dozens of Palestinians from jail.

Hamas is delaying the release of the next group of Israeli hostages, accusing Israel of preventing aid and Palestinians from returning home in Gaza. Israel said Hamas is violating the ceasefire.

The exchanges are part of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be the first foreign leader to visit the White House since President Trump's return to office, in a crucial meeting for the future of the Middle East.

Siegel is the first American to be released as part of this deal. A total of 18 hostages have been released since the ceasefire took effect. Hundreds of Palestinians have been released so far.

Three more Israeli and five Thai hostages have been released by Palestinian militants from captivity and returned to Israel, after being held for more than 15 months in Gaza.

All four hostages are female Israeli soldiers. They are expected to be released Saturday in accordance with a ceasefire agreement with Israel that's halted fighting in the Gaza war since last weekend.

There are men, women and children on the list of 33 to be released from Gaza. Two are U.S. citizens. Israel is set to free hundreds of prisoners in exchange for them.

Seven of the nearly 100 hostages held in Gaza are U.S. citizens, several of whom are confirmed dead.

The president-elect made a similar pledge on social media in early December. His latest comments came during a wide-ranging news conference from Mar-a-Lago.

The deal would secure release of a third of the approximately 100 hostages who remain in Gaza, including two dual U.S.-Israeli nationals. In return, Israel would release some Palestinian prisoners.

Qaid Farhan Alkadi, 52, was taken to a hospital in Israel, where members of his large Bedouin Arab family gathered around his bedside in a joyful reunion.