Israel’s government has approved a new Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal with Hamas, paving the way for it to come into force on Sunday.
The decision followed several hours of discussions that continued late into the night. Two far-right ministers voted against the agreement.
The security cabinet earlier recommended ratification of the accord, saying it “supports the achievement of the war’s objectives,” according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
It came hours after the prime minister’s office and Hamas said they had finalized the details of the deal, two days after it was announced by brokers Qatar, the US and Egypt.
Under the deal, 33 Israeli hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza after 15 months of conflict will be exchanged for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons during the first phase, which will last six weeks.
Israeli forces will also withdraw from densely populated areas of Gaza, displaced Palestinians will be allowed to begin returning to their homes, and hundreds of aid trucks will be allowed into the territory every day.
Negotiations for the second phase – which should allow for the release of the remaining hostages, the full withdrawal of Israeli troops and the “establishment of a sustainable peace” – will begin on the 16th.
The third and final phase will involve the rebuilding of Gaza – something that could take years – and the return of any remaining bodies of the hostages.
Qatar said the hostages to be freed during the first phase would include “civilian women, female soldiers, children, the elderly, and sick and wounded civilians.”
Israel says three hostages are expected to be freed on the first day of the truce, and that more smaller groups will be freed at regular intervals over the next six weeks.
The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas – which is banned as a terrorist organization by Israel, the US and others – in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. .
Since then, more than 46,870 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry there. Most of the 2.3 million population have also been displaced, destruction is widespread and there are severe shortages of food, fuel, medicine and shelter as the struggle to help those in need.
Israel says Hamas is still holding 94 hostages, 34 of whom are presumed dead. In addition, four Israelis were kidnapped before the war, two of whom are dead.
Ahead of the Israeli government’s vote on the deal, Culture Minister Miki Zohar of Netanyahu’s Likud party said: “It is a very difficult decision, but we have decided to support it because it is very important for us to see all our children, men and women back home.”
“We hope to be able to complete the work in Gaza in the future,” he added.
But far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said he was “appalled” by the details of the deal, including that “terrorists sentenced to life” would be released in exchange for hostages, and called on other ministers to join him in the vote. against that.
Ben-Gvir announced on Thursday that his Jewish Power party would leave the ruling coalition if the deal is approved. But he said he would not topple the government in parliament and would return “if the war against Hamas continues in full force.”
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, another far-right politician opposed to the deal, said his Religious Zionist party would resign if the war did not continue after the end of the first phase.
The three-phase structure has also caused division and anxiety among some hostage families. They fear that their relatives will be abandoned in Gaza after the end of the first phase and call on the government to ensure the implementation of the second and third phases.
“For 469 days our loved ones were abandoned in captivity, and now, finally, there is hope,” said Einav Zangauker, whose 25-year-old son Matan was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz.
“This agreement must be respected to the end, so that everyone returns home and the war ends. Ending the war, returning everyone and returning to normal is in Israel’s interest.”
A cabinet vote was expected on Thursday, but the meeting was postponed after Netanyahu accused Hamas of turning a blind eye to parts of the deal – which Hamas denied.
In the early hours of the morning on Friday, the Prime Minister’s Office announced that the Israeli negotiating team in Doha had finalized the agreement.
Hamas also released a statement saying that “obstacles” that had arisen over the terms of the deal had been resolved at dawn.
A source close to Hamas told the AFP news agency that the first three hostages to be freed would be women.
On Friday, Israel’s Justice Ministry released a list of 95 Palestinian prisoners it says will be part of the first group to be released in exchange for hostages. Among them were 69 women, 16 men and 10 minors, reports AFP.
A meeting was also held in Cairo on Friday to discuss mechanisms for implementing the agreement, a senior Egyptian official told the BBC.
All the necessary arrangements have been made, including the formation of a joint operations room to ensure compliance, which would include representatives from Egypt, Qatar, the US, Palestine and Israel, the official said.
Egypt’s state-run Al-Qahera News TV also quoted a source as saying they had agreed to allow 600 aid trucks to enter a day during the ceasefire.
That would require more than 14 times the January daily average of 43 trucks, according to UN data. But Rik Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization’s Gaza representative, said “the possibility is very strong” if the Rafah crossing with Egypt and other crossings are opened.
WHO also plans to deliver a number of prefabricated hospitals to support the devastated health sector. Half of the 36 hospitals in Gaza are not working, while the rest are working only partially.
There has been no respite for Palestinians on the ground in Gaza since a ceasefire agreement was announced on Wednesday night.
The Hamas-run Gaza Civil Defense Agency said a total of 117 Palestinians, including 32 women and 30 children, had been killed in Israeli strikes since then.
Tamer Abu Shaaban said his young niece was killed by shrapnel from a missile while she was playing in the school yard in Gaza City where her displaced family had taken refuge.
“Is this the truce they’re talking about?” he told the Reuters news agency as he stood next to her body in the morgue. “What did this young girl, this child, do to deserve this?”
Israel’s military said on Thursday afternoon that it had carried out strikes on 50 “terrorist targets” across Gaza over the previous day and had taken steps to mitigate civilian casualties.
