Israel and Hamas have agreed to a ceasefire-hostage deal after, under an agreement negotiated by Egyptian, Qatari, and U.S. authorities.
The plan, which will take place over multiple phases, comes into effect on Sunday.
The final deal still needs to be approved by Israel’s cabinet. While at least two members have rejected the deal, it’s widely expected to be approved.
Since the deal’s announcement, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have bombed northern Gaza, killing at least 12.
Background
Hamas, which Australia lists as a terrorist organisation, launched an attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, killing at least 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Roughly 100 hostages remain captive in Gaza.
Israel responded by declaring war on Hamas and bombarding Gaza, causing a humanitarian crisis that has displaced at least 90% of the population.
At least 46,600 Palestinians have been killed in the past 15 months, according to.
The deal
The ceasefire deal has three phases. Under Phase 1, there will be a complete ceasefire and the return of some hostages.
Ameans both sides agree to stop fighting while officials negotiate the terms of a permanent truce.
Hamas will release 33 hostages over a six week period, including women, children, older adults and the wounded.
In exchange, Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including several serving life sentences.
During this time, the IDF will be required to withdraw from central Gaza, and retreat to a buffer zone near the Israeli border.
The deal specifies 600 UN humanitarian trucks can enter each day. Officials have said delivering aid could be difficult due to Israel’s restrictions on some UN agencies and widespread looting.
The deal also allows displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza. The IDF’s extensive bombing campaign has reduced most of this area to rubble. U.S. research estimates bombing has destroyed 60% of all buildings in Gaza.
Phase 2+3
The specific details of Phase 2 will be confirmed during the six weeks of Phase 1, according to officials.
U.S. President Joe Biden said the negotiations would bring about a “permanent end to the war” across Phases 2 and 3. Biden also said if negotiations over Phase 2 lasted longer than the six weeks of Phase 1, “the ceasefire will continue”.
When Phase 2 begins, Hamas would release the remaining living hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners in Israel, and the complete withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza.
Much of the negotiations in this part of the deal would relate to long-term reconstruction and the conditions needed for permanent peace in the region.
A big focus of this phase will be working out how Gaza will be governed in the long term.
Your contribution ensures The Daily Aus can continue doing the work you love.
I want to give $10 monthly to help TDA keep doing the news.
Your details:
In Phase 3, the remains of any hostages who have been killed would be exchanged for the implementation of a multi-year reconstruction plan in Gaza, to be administered by an international coalition.
What now?
Israel’s cabinet, which includes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his senior ministers, now needs to approve the terms of the plan.
Two hard-right ultra-orthodox members of Israel’s government have said they will reject the deal.
However, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said “a majority in the government… will support the agreement”.
Response
Netanyahu said he would issue a formal response to the deal after it passed Israel’s cabinet.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog urged the cabinet to accept the deal, which he said would “[bring] our sons and daughters home”.
In a statement, Hamas said the deal was “an achievement for our people, our resistance, our nation, and the free people of the world. It marks a crucial turning point in the struggle against the enemy, on the path to achieving our people’s goals of liberation and return”.
Global reaction
Announcing the deal, President Biden said: “More than 15 months of terror for the hostages, their families, the Israeli people. More than 15 months of suffering by the innocent people of Gaza. Fighting in Gaza will stop. And soon the hostages will return home to their families.”
President-elect Donald Trump, who had said there would be “hell to pay” if the hostages were not released by his 20 January inauguration, posted on Truth Social saying his incoming administration has “achieved so much without even being in the White House”.
Biden said the current and incoming administrations have been working as ”one team” in the past weeks on the deal. Trump‘s pick for Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, had attended the negotiations in Qatar.
Other world leaders, including the UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, have hailed the ceasefire and called on all sides to respect its terms.
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani expressed hope that the ceasefire will usher in a “new phase” for the Middle East.
Australia reaction
Australia’s Prime Ministersaid the ceasefire is a “new chapter for the Israeli and Palestinian people”.
“This is an important breakthrough,“ he told reporters this morning.
He called on all sides to observe the terms of the ceasefire in order to “safeguard a lasting peace”.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton also welcomed the deal, saying Australia “should now seek to re-establish its important relationship with Israel.”
