Three Israeli hostages were released Sunday as part of a long-awaited ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. They are the first of 33 that Hamas is expected to free during the first phase of the deal. A transfer to the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Authority was underway just after 5:30 p.m. local time, those agencies said in a joint announcement. Both IDF special forces and ISA forces will accompany the freed hostages back to Israeli territory, where they will undergo initial medical evaluations, according to the announcement. The commanders and soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces salute and embrace the released hostages as they make their way home to the State of Israel,” they said. The hostages released were confirmed as 24-year-old Romi Gonen, 31-year-old Doron Steinbrecher and 28-year-old Emily Damari. The ceasefire officially began earlier Sunday after a last-minute delay of almost three hours. The fighting continued past the initially provisioned 8:30 a.m. local (1:30 a.m. Eastern) deadline as the Israeli military said Hamas had failed to provide the names of the first three hostages due to be released, per the terms of the agreement. In Gaza, fighter jets and drones were reported to have disappeared from the skies as the deal took effect, and at least 191 aid trucks were said to have begun entering into Gaza through the Karem Shalom crossing. The first phase of the ceasefire calls for Hamas to release 33 hostages over a six-week period. They include women, children and hostages over 50 years old, a draft viewed by CBS News said. The plan says three living female hostages will be returned on Day 1. Four hostages will be released on Day 7, and the remaining 26 over the next five weeks. On Wednesday, Mr. Biden and Qatar’s prime minister separately announced the deal after a week of intense negotiations mediated by Qatar, the U.S. and Egypt. In a post on Truth Social, Trump welcomed the impending release of the three hostages.