During the night to Sunday, the Israeli government announced that it would wait to complete its part of the exchange.
According to a message from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, the release of 602 Palestinian prisoners will not take place until Israel is convinced that Hamas will also carry out the next release - "without the humiliating ceremonies".
In the West Bank, relatives of imprisoned Palestinians had gathered and waited, as they had been informed that the releases would take place at 8 pm.
The wait is very difficult, says Shirin al-Hamamreh, who was waiting for her brother in the city of Ramallah, but she adds that patience is there.
We are waiting for them, to hug and meet them, but Netanyahu is always delaying, says Fatima Abu Abdullah in Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, where she was waiting for her son.
Displayed on Stage
This weekend's planned exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners is one of the last steps in the fragile ceasefire's first phase.
The Palestinian extremist movement Hamas, as before, made a big show of its releases on Saturday. Israeli hostages were displayed by militarily uniformed and armed Hamas men on different stages in the Gaza Strip, before being handed over to the Red Cross.
In Israel, the procedures were followed by anxious relatives, who celebrated when it became clear that the transports had crossed the border. Celebrations were also held by Israeli demonstrators.
You don't know how much I've dreamed of you, said the released Omer Shem Tov when he met his parents.
During the releases, Hamas filmed clips where two other hostages sit in a car and follow the proceedings from a distance, then appealing to the Israeli government to let them come home as well.
Dressed Up Prisoners
Prisoner transports were reported to have already left Ofer prison in Israel when the new message was given and they turned back.
Among the 602 Palestinian prisoners, there are over 100 who have been sentenced to long prison terms in Israel, many for serious violent crimes. Over 440 of them have been detained during the war and were reportedly labeled as "non-combatants" by Israeli media.
Israel has previously dressed released prisoners in shirts with various messages and Stars of David. At this release, they were to be dressed in shirts with text and armbands with Israeli flags and the text "The eternal people do not forget", reports Haaretz.
Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas agreed on a ceasefire that began on January 19 and was to last for six weeks in the first phase.
During the six weeks, Hamas is to release a total of 33 people held as hostages in Gaza, most of them since the Palestinian extremists' attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Israel is to release a total of around 1,900 people. This includes those who have been sentenced to prison terms in Israel and those who have been detained during the war. Exactly how many are released each time is unclear, but it is to happen simultaneously with Hamas releasing hostages.
When phase one is over, around 60 Israelis will still be held as hostages by Hamas. The idea is that they will be released in a second phase of the ceasefire, which is intended to pave the way for an Israeli withdrawal and a more long-term and "sustainable" calm in the Gaza Strip. But the circumstances for this have not yet been negotiated.
