Hamas has handed over what it says are the bodies of four Israeli hostages from Gaza, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
Israel is testing DNA samples to confirm they are the remains of Shlomo Mansour, 86, Ohad Yahalomi, 50, Tsachi Idan, 50, and Itzik Elgarat, 69, all of whom were taken by Hamas in the 7 October 2023 attacks.
Early on Thursday, Israel began releasing more than 600 Palestinian prisoners, with dozens returned to the occupied West Bank and Gaza, where they were met by jubilant crowds.
It will be the final exchange of the first phase of the ceasefire deal, which is due to end on Saturday.
Israel is yet to confirm the results of DNA tests carried out on the four bodies returned as part of the exchange.
Initial tests were expected to happen close to the Israel-Gaza border, and Israeli media later reported they were transported to a forensics laboratory in Tel Aviv.
It comes after the body of a Palestinian woman from Gaza was handed over by Hamas to Israel instead of the body of Israeli Shiri Bibas last Thursday, provoking fury in Israel. Hamas said it was a misidentification and later handed a body over to Israel confirmed to be that of Bibas.
Hamas handed the bodies over privately, with no public ceremony, as Israel demanded, unlike in previous exchanges.
Israel has accused Hamas of "humiliating" handover ceremonies - and delayed last weekend's prisoner release because of what it said was the cruel treatment of hostages at the handovers.
Before Wednesday's releases, a Hamas official told the AFP news agency that the return of the four bodies would take place "without public presence to prevent the occupation from finding any pretext for delay or obstruction".
Photos released by the Reuters news agency showed a bus carrying what are believed to be Palestinian prisoners out of Ofer Prison in the West Bank late on Wednesday.
A bus carrying Palestinian prisoners later arrived at a checkpoint at the Ramallah Cultural Palace, where a large crowd has gathered to celebrate their release.
Later, dozens of Palestinian prisoners were seen getting off buses outside a hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza.
The Palestinian prisoners expected to be released include more than 400 Gazans detained by Israeli forces during the war and 50 prisoners serving life sentences in Israeli jails.
Along with Ofer prison in the West Bank, Israel earlier said prisoners would also be released from Ketziot prison in southern Israel.
The Hamas-run Prisoners' Media Office said a hospital in Gaza was preparing to receive the released Palestinians.
