Israel’s cabinet has approved an agreement with the Palestinian militant group Hamas for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip, taking effect on Sunday 19 January, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced on Saturday 18 January.
“The Government has approved the framework for the return of the hostages. The framework for the hostages’ release will come into effect on Sunday,” the office stated.
Following the Israeli cabinet’s approval of the agreement, Brett McGurk, the lead U.S. negotiator, stated that the plan was proceeding as scheduled. According to a post on X by a spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, the ceasefire is set to take effect at 6:30 a.m. GMT on Sunday.
The ceasefire, which takes three stages, starts with an initial six-week phase where hostages held by Hamas get exchanged for prisoners and detainees jailed in Israel.
In the first phase, starting Sunday 19 January, 33 of the 98 remaining Israeli hostages, including women, children, men over 50, and ill or wounded captives, are set to be freed, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
The Palestinian prisoners set to be released include 737 men, women, and teenagers, some of whom are members of Palestinian militant groups convicted of carrying out attacks that killed dozens of Israelis.
The Israeli Justice Ministry published their details early on Saturday, along with the ceasefire agreement, which stated that 30 Palestinian prisoners would be released for each female hostage on Sunday.
The second phase, when implemented, will see the return of the remaining living Israeli hostages, including male soldiers, President Biden stated.
“Remaining Israeli forces will be removed from Gaza, and the temporary ceasefire will become permanent,” he added.
Phase three of the agreement will focus on Gaza’s reconstruction, which has been devastated with no functioning health or infrastructure systems, as well as the return of any deceased hostages to their families.
This decision follows a meeting that lasted over six hours, during which the Israeli government ratified the agreement to bring an end to the 15-month war.
Despite the ceasefire deal, Israeli warplanes have continued bombardments in Gaza. An airstrike on early Saturday struck a tent in the Mawasi area west of Khan Younis, killing five people, bringing the death toll from Israeli bombardment to 119 Palestinians since the accord was announced on Wednesday, 15 January.
Since October 7, 2023, the Ministry of Health in Gaza has stated that at least 46,000 Palestinians have died and 109,274 have been wounded. More than 90 percent of the population has been forced to flee their homes.
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