Cease-fire deal reached between Israel and Hamas in Gaza
WASHINGTON — More than 15 months into Israel’s devastating war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the two sides have agreed to a cease-fire deal that would pause fighting and free some Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners, U.S. and Qatari officials said Wednesday.
“At long last, I can announce a ceasefire, and a hostage deal, has been reached between Israel and Hamas,” President Biden said from the White House.
The guidelines of the hard-fought agreement were first presented by Biden last summer, but months of negotiations repeatedly failed to bring the two enemies together.
The ceasefire, which will start on Sunday, starts with a six-week period during which fighting stops and hostages are released. During that period negotiations for a permanent end to the war will commence, Biden said.
“The Palestinian people have gone through hell,” Biden added. “Too many people have died.”
Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani, first announced the agreement.
“We thank God we’ve reached this phase,” he said at a news conference in the Qatari capital, Doha. “We hope this will be the last page in these times of war. We hope all the parties will fulfill their obligations.
“We tell our brothers in Gaza, we will always support the Palestinian people,” he added. “We will never give up on Gaza.”
U.S., Qatari and Egyptian negotiators spent months holding extensive rounds of talks with Israeli and Hamas leaders to broker what the parties hope will bring at least a partial end to a conflict that has left 46,000 Palestinians dead, around half women and children, Palestinian officials estimate.
Unusually, teams representing both Biden and President-elect Donald Trump worked together to secure the deal and joined the other mediators. “We’ve spoken as one team,” Biden said.
The war — which destabilized the Middle East and unleashed protests across the U.S. — began Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, invaded southern Israel, killed more than 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped some 250 others.
Israel immediately launched a relentless barrage of air strikes and ground operations that destroyed most of the coastal enclave’s houses, buildings, hospitals and infrastructure, bringing many survivors to the brink of starvation.
Under the deal, Israel and Hamas agree to an initial six-week halt to fighting. About a third of the 100 hostages remaining would be freed and as many as 1,000 Palestinians held by Israel would be released. A previous group of hostages was released in November 2023.
Notably, Israeli troops will not withdraw from the Gaza Strip but will retreat away from populated areas.
Israel believes that about 34 of the 100 remaining hostages in Gaza are dead. Those to be released are mostly older people, women, children and the infirm. Soldiers would not yet be released.
Biden proposed the framework for the cease-fire months ago. It’s been delayed by both sides. Hamas has not wanted to accept anything short of a full end of Israeli occupation of and attacks on Gaza. Israel has refused to withdraw from the territory until it deems Hamas has been destroyed.
Next week’s Trump inauguration may have increased pressure. He has said publicly he wanted to see hostages released before he takes office and signaled he would not hold back Israel.
The deal still faces obstacles. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet must approve it, and given the recalcitrant members of that group, approval is not guaranteed.
Interjecting a note of caution, Netanyahu said Wednesday not all details of the agreement — expected to be voted on Thursday by the Israeli Cabinet — had yet been settled.
“Several items in the framework have yet to be finalized,” his office said in a statement Wednesday night.
Still, the Israeli leader — who has worked assiduously throughout the conflict to placate hard-line elements of his coalition — claimed credit for wringing final concessions from Hamas.
His office said the prime minister’s “firm stance” had resulted in a last-minute agreement by the militant group regarding the deployment of Israeli forces in a narrow border strip dividing Gaza from Egypt.
For the families and loved ones of captives in Gaza, word of the diplomatic breakthrough brought a burst of hope and relief, but also a strong sense that it was far too early for unbridled rejoicing. And for some, the implementation of the accord will bring crushing confirmation that their loved ones did not survive.
“Deep anxiety and concerns accompany us regarding the possibility that the agreement might not be fully implemented, leaving hostages behind,” said a statement from an Israeli umbrella group representing the families. “We urgently call for swift arrangements to ensure all phases of the deal are carried out.”
The group, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, expressed gratitude to both Biden and Trump for the breakthrough.
Separately, the families of U.S. citizens among the hostages issued a joint statement saying they were “deeply grateful” for the agreement, but pointing out that because it will be implemented in phases, the coming days and weeks would be “just as painful for our families as the entirety of our loved ones’ horrific ordeals.”
Israeli officials were scrambling to make preparations for receiving the hostages, on the assumption that the deal would go ahead.
In Gaza, where the onset of winter has brought particular misery, there was rejoicing at the prospect of a halt to hostilities, with horns honking and Palestinian flags waving in rubble-filled streets. But many questioned whether the accord was genuine and the violence would really end.
Gaza’s civil defense called on people to refrain from the custom of firing off celebratory rounds of gunfire, because people living in tents were unprotected from stray bullets.
