The Israeli cabinet has greenlit an agreement with the Palestinian militant group Hamas for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza, according to a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, a day before the agreement is set to take effect.
Following a meeting that lasted over six hours, the government endorsed the deal, which may help bring an end to the 15-month-long conflict in the Palestinian Enclave controlled by Hamas.
“The Government has ratified the framework for the return of the hostages. This framework will be effective starting Sunday,” stated Mr. Netanyahu’s office in a short announcement.
The ceasefire is scheduled to commence tomorrow morning at 6:30 am Irish time, as reported by a spokesperson from the Qatari foreign ministry.
Medics in Gaza reported that an Israeli airstrike resulted in the deaths of five individuals in a tent located in the Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis in the southern part of the enclave.
This incident raised the toll to 119 Palestinians killed due to Israeli airstrikes since the announcement of the agreement on Wednesday.
Following the Israeli cabinet’s approval, lead U.S. negotiator Brett McGurk indicated that the preparations for the plan are progressing smoothly.
The White House anticipates that the ceasefire will begin tomorrow morning, with three female hostages scheduled to be released to Israel later in the day through the Red Cross.
“Every detail in this agreement has been meticulously addressed. We are quite confident … it is set to be implemented on Sunday,” Mr. McGurk stated during a CNN interview from the White House.
Palestinians gather to receive food at a donation center managed by volunteers in Khan Younis.
As part of the agreement, the ceasefire will unfold in three stages, beginning with an initial six-week phase in which hostages held by Hamas will be exchanged for prisoners detained by Israel.
In this phase, thirty-three out of the remaining 98 Israeli hostages—including women, children, and men aged over 50—are to be released.
By the end of the first phase, Israel will free all Palestinian women and children under 19 currently held in Israeli prisons.
The names of 95 Palestinian prisoners slated for release tomorrow were revealed by the Israeli Justice Ministry earlier.
After the release of hostages tomorrow, Mr. McGurk mentioned that the agreement stipulates the release of four additional female hostages after seven days, with three more hostages released every subsequent seven days.
Opposition from Hardliners
The agreement faced significant backlash from some hardliners within the Israeli cabinet. Media reports indicated that 24 ministers in Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition voted in favor of the deal, while eight opposed it.
Those against the agreement argued that it amounted to a surrender to Hamas.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened to resign if the proposal was accepted and urged fellow ministers to reject it.
However, he stated he would not seek to destabilize the government.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, another hardliner, also threatened to exit the government if military action against Hamas did not resume following the initial six-week ceasefire phase.
Far-right Israelis protest outside the Prime Minister’s Office against the ceasefire agreement.
After a last-minute delay, which Israel attributed to Hamas, the Israeli security cabinet duly approved the ceasefire agreement, marking the first of two necessary approvals.
Israel’s military offensive in Gaza commenced after Hamas carried out attacks on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people and 250 hostages, according to Israeli estimates.
The ongoing war between Israeli forces and Hamas has devastated much of densely populated Gaza, leading to more than 46,000 deaths and the displacement of the majority of the enclave’s 2.3 million pre-war residents, as reported by local authorities.
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If successful, the ceasefire could also help mitigate tensions in the Middle East, where the conflict in Gaza has drawn in Iran and its proxies, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, and various armed groups in Iraq, as well as in the occupied West Bank.
Civilians in Gaza are suffering from a humanitarian disaster marked by hunger, cold, and disease. The ceasefire agreement includes provisions for a significant increase in aid, and international organizations have lined up trucks at Gaza’s borders to deliver food, fuel, medicine, and essential supplies.
The Palestinian relief agency UNRWA announced that it is prepared to send 4,000 truckloads of aid into the coastal enclave, with half of that shipment consisting of food.
