An Israeli soldier clears an armored personnel carrier, near Israel’s border after leaving Gaza, during the temporary truce between the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas and Israel, in Israel, Nov. 24, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Combat between Israeli troops and Hamas fighters halted on Friday for the first time in seven weeks in a temporary truce ahead of the planned release of Israeli hostages held by the terrorists in exchange for jailed Palestinians.

No big bombings, artillery strikes, or rocket attacks were reported, although Hamas and Israel both accused each other of sporadic shootings and other violations. Both said the war would resume on full throttle as soon as the truce was over.

Above northern Gaza’s combat zone, viewed from across the fence in Israel, there was no sign of the warplanes that have thundered through the sky for weeks, explosions on the ground, or the contrails of Hamas rocket fire. Just one plume of smoke was visible in the early afternoon.

Columns of Israeli tanks rolled away from the Gaza Strip’s northern end, while aid trucks entered from Egypt at the southern end.

The four-day ceasefire, which began at 7 am (0500 GMT), involves the release of 50 women and children hostages held by Hamas terrorists, in return for 150 Palestinian woman and teenagers held in Israeli jails. The first 13 hostages and 39 Palestinians were due to be freed later on Friday.

Israel says it could be extended beyond four days if more hostages are freed at a rate of at least 10 per day, and a Palestinian source has said up to 100 could ultimately go free.

Additional aid is to flow into Gaza, which has been under weeks of Israeli bombardment.

Hamas confirmed that all hostilities from its forces would cease. But Abu Ubaida, spokesperson for Hamas’ armed wing, later stressed that this was a “temporary truce.”

In a video message, he called for an “escalation of the confrontation … on all resistance fronts,” including the West Bank.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed a similar return to fighting: “This will be a short pause, at the conclusion of which the war [and] fighting will continue with great might and will generate pressure for the return of more hostages.”

Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza, the Palestinian enclave ruled by Hamas, after Hamas terrorists burst across the border fence into southern Israel on Oct. 7, murdering 1,200 people and seizing about 240 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Since then, Israel has waged air strikes and ground operations, with the stated goal of destroying the Palestinian terrorist group. According to Hamas-controlled health authorities in Gaza, thousands of Palestinians have been killed during the Israeli military campaign.

Israel has told displaced Gazans not to attempt to return to the northern part of Gaza, the focus of its ground campaign since the start of this month.

Gaza residents said the Israelis had dropped leaflets warning people not to travel north and have fired over the heads of some people who were trying to get back into Gaza City.

Sirens sounded in two southern Israeli villages warning of possible incoming Palestinian rockets. An Israeli government spokesman said Hamas had fired rockets in violation of the truce but there were no reports of damage.

Fighting had raged in the hours leading up to the truce, with officials inside the enclave saying a hospital in Gaza City was among the targets bombed. According to the Israeli military, Hamas has used hospitals in Gaza to house their command centers and weaponry. The European Union has lambasted the terror group for using hospitals as “human shields.”

The temporary truce came about amid international concern over the fate of the hostages and the plight of Palestinian civilians trapped in Gaza. Israel has rejected calls for a full ceasefire, arguing it would benefit Hamas, a position backed by the United States.

The 13 first hostages were expected to be released around 1400 GMT to the Red Cross and an Egyptian security delegation, then brought out through Egypt for transfer to Israel, Egyptian security sources said. In exchange Israel will release 24 women and 15 teenagers in the West Bank, Palestinian officials said.

The head of the Palestinian Authority’s prisoners’ commission, Qadura Fares, said that as soon as Israel received the hostages at the Rafah crossing, Israel‘s prisons’ authority would move the Palestinian prisoners to the Red Cross.

Under the agreement, desperately-needed aid began to be delivered to Gaza. By mid-morning, 60 trucks carrying aid had crossed from Egypt at the Rafah border point, according to Gaza border authorities.

Two of the first trucks to enter sported banners that said, “Together for Humanity.” Another said: “For our brothers in Gaza.”

Egypt has said 130,000 liters of diesel and four trucks of gas will be delivered daily to Gaza and that 200 trucks of aid would enter Gaza daily.

A Palestinian official familiar with the truce talks told Reuters that only three trucks of aid out of 100 trucks had reached the northern Gaza Strip so far.

“This is grave foot-dragging,” the official said.