A four-day ceasefire came into effect in Gaza after weeks of war as part of a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of hostages taken during the October 7 terror attack.
Following hours of talks, Israeli leaders agreed to enact a cease-fire at 7 a.m. local time Friday — 12 a.m. EST, the first major lull in the war.
Under the deal, brokered by Qatar, Hamas will release 50 women and children over the course of the ceasefire, with Israel agreeing to extend the “humanitarian pause” by one more day for every 10 additional hostages released.
The first group of 13 Israeli hostages, women and children, is expected to be released later Friday.
Hamas is holding nearly 240 hostages in Gaza, according to Israel. That figure includes an estimated 10 Americans, US officials said.
Israeli forces operating in Gaza will take part in a four-day ceasefire starting Thursday.ATEF SAFADI/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock The ceasefire will ensure the release of 50 women and children held hostage by Hamas.AFP via Getty Images
Along with the ceasefire, the Jewish state will release 150 Palestinian women and minors who are currently in custody in Israel.
As the exchange takes place, Gaza is also expected to see an influx of humanitarian aid arrive, including medical supplies and fuel after weeks of hospitals seeing their resources dwindle.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the release of the hostages would take place in five phases, the first of which would see the women and children handed over to the Red Cross and then detained by the IDF.
The hostages will undergo a medical examination before being sent to an Israeli hospital to meet their families.
The lull in the conflict comes after Gaza has been devastated by Israeli airstrikes for weeks. AFP via Getty Images
The fourth stage will then see the hostages interviewed by medical and military personnel to determine if they are well enough to brief officials about everything that has happened to them since their abduction on Oct. 7. The final stage will see the former hostages formally speaking to Israeli security officials.
President Biden said he welcomed “an agreement to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist group Hamas.”
“Today’s deal should bring home additional American hostages, and I will not stop until they are all freed,” Biden said after the deal was announced Tuesday night.
The ceasefire includes an increase in aid sent to Gaza.AFP via Getty Images
Despite negotiators’ hopes that the deal would prompt a further ceasefire in a war that has claimed the lives of more than 1,200 Israelis and more than 12,000 Palestinians, Netanyahu said peace would not be an option until Hamas was eliminated.
“I want to make it clear here again: The war continues, the war will continue until we achieve all our goals: to eliminate Hamas, Netanyahu said in a statement before the hostage deal agreement.
“To return all our hostages, to ensure that the day after Hamas, Gaza will no longer be a threat to Israel, there will be no element in it that supports terrorism, that educates its children to terrorism, and that threatens the State of Israel. .”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
