Eight of the remaining hostages set to be released by Hamas in the first phase of a ceasefire agreement with Israel are dead, according to an Israeli government spokesperson.

JERUSALEM — Israel says a Hamas list shows that eight of the 33 hostages to be released in the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire are dead. Government spokesman David Mencer told journalists Monday that Hamas said the other 25 are alive. Israel overnight said it had received a list of information on the status of the hostages from Hamas.

Of 26 hostages yet to be freed under first phase of deal, only 18 are still alive; government spokesman said the families have been informed Eight of the hostages expected to be released in the first phase of a truce deal between Israel and Hamas are dead,

The Israeli government approved Friday a ceasefire deal to end fighting in Gaza, paving the way for a six-week ceasefire and the release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas on Sunday.

A delegation from Palestinian group Hamas arrived in Cairo on Monday to discuss the implementation of ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza, the group said in a statement. (Reporting by Ali Sawafta, Writing by Menna Alaa El-Din,

NBC News' Raf Sanchez reports on the fragile ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after a crisis over the weekend threatened to unravel the peace deal with a delay from Israel in allowing displaced Palestinians to return to their homes in the north of Gaza.

Experts discuss how long rebuilding Gaza's $18.5 billion of damaged infrastructure could take after 15 months of conflict.