Jerusalem: The much-needed ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza strip in Palestine goes into effect at 8:30 am local time (12 pm Indian Time) on Sunday, mediator Qatar said. The ceasefire will pause the fighting after 15 months of war and see the release of dozens of hostages held by the militants in the Gaza Strip and hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Israel's Cabinet approved the deal early on Saturday; the ceasefire will see the first hostages released. Brokered by mediators the United States, Qatar and Egypt in months of indirect talks between the warring sides, the ceasefire is the second truce achieved in the devastating conflict.
The Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel killed some 1,200 people and left some 250 others captive. Nearly 100 hostages remain in Gaza. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed almost 50,000 Palestinians, including thousands of children and women.
'Israel Reserves The Right To Resume The War If Necessary'
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that Israel reserves the right to resume fighting in Gaza with US support, as he pledged to bring home all hostages held in the Palestinian territory.
"We reserve the right to resume the war if necessary, with American support," Netanyahu said in a televised statement, a day before a ceasefire is set to take effect. "We are thinking of all our hostages ... I promise you that we will achieve all our objectives and bring back all the hostages.
"With this agreement, we will bring back 33 of our brothers and sisters, the majority (of them) alive," he said. He said the 42-day first phase, which starts on Sunday, was a "temporary ceasefire."
"If we are forced to resume the war, we will do so with force," Netanyahu said, adding that Israel had "changed the face of the Middle East" since the war began.
Netanyahu said that Israel had "changed the face of the Middle East" since the war began. Hamas said Israel had "failed to achieve its aggressive goals" and "only succeeded in committing war crimes that disgrace the dignity of humanity".
Hostage-Prisoner exchange
During an initial 42-day ceasefire, Palestinian militant groups will hand over 33 hostages, three of them on Sunday, and Israel will release over 700 Palestinian prisoners, some of whom will be deported.
Israel's justice ministry said 737 Palestinian prisoners and detainees would be freed as part of the deal's first phase -- none before 4:00 pm (1400 GMT) on Sunday.
Since mediators Qatar and the United States, which brokered the deal along with Egypt, announced the details on Wednesday, Israeli strikes on Gaza have continued. On Saturday, Gaza's civil defence rescue agency said at least five members of one family were killed when a strike hit their tent in Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza.
Explosions were heard over Jerusalem as Yemen's Huthi rebels launched a barrage of missiles at Israel in a show of support for the Palestinians ahead of the truce. The Huthis said they targeted the defence ministry in Tel Aviv and also fired two missiles at the Red Sea port city of Eilat.
Truce Takes Effect On Eve Of Trump's Inauguration
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani told Sky News the framework signed this week was the same as one agreed in December 2023, adding it amounted to 13 months of "waste". The truce is to take effect on the eve of Donald Trump's inauguration for a second term as US president.
Trump told US network NBC on Saturday that he had told Netanyahu that the war "has to end". "We want it to end, but to keep doing what has to be done," he said. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority, which has partial administrative control in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, had completed preparations "to assume full responsibility in Gaza" after the war.
Israel has expressed no definitive stance on post-war governance beyond rejecting any role for either Hamas or the PA. Outgoing US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Gaza should be under PA control.
Gazans Prepare To Return Home
Ahead of the truce, displaced Gazans prepared to return home. "I will go to kiss my land," said Nasr al-Gharabli, who fled his home in Gaza City for a camp further south. "If I die on my land, it would be better than being here as a displaced person."
Jerusalem residents said the deal had been a long time coming. "Hopefully a maximum amount of hostages will be coming back", said Beeri Yemeni, a university student. "Maybe this is the beginning of (the) end of suffering for both sides, hopefully," he said, adding that "the war needed to end like a long, long time ago."
Eight ministers in Israel's hard-right government voted against the deal, including far-right ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
Aid-starved
Mediators had worked for months to reach a deal but the efforts were fruitless until Trump's inauguration neared. Brett McGurk, the pointman for outgoing President Joe Biden, was joined in the region by Trump envoy Steve Witkoff in an unusual pairing to finalise the agreement, US officials said.
Netanyahu said most of the 33 captives to be released in the first phase are alive. "With this agreement, we will bring back 33 of our brothers and sisters, the majority alive," he said. Israeli forces will withdraw from densely populated areas of Gaza and allow displaced Palestinians to return "to their residences", the Qatari prime minister said.
Biden said an unfinalised second phase of the agreement would bring a "permanent end to the war". In aid-starved Gaza, humanitarian workers caution a monumental task lies ahead. Hundreds of trucks loaded with aid have lined up on the Egyptian side of the Gaza border. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said 600 trucks a day would enter Gaza after the ceasefire takes effect, including 50 carrying fuel. (Agency inputs)
Read More
UN Resolution 1701 Is At The Heart Of The Israel-Hezbollah Ceasefire. What Is It?
