Netanyahu says deal to release hostages held in Gaza has been reached
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a deal to return hostages held in the Gaza Strip has been reached, after his office had said earlier there were last-minute snags in finalising a ceasefire that would pause 15 months of war.
Netanyahu said he would convene his security Cabinet later on Friday and then the government to approve the long-awaited agreement.
Netanyahu’s statement appeared to clear the way for the Israeli government to approve of the deal, which would pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and see dozens of hostages held by militants in Gaza released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. It would also allow hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to the remains of their homes in Gaza.
Destroyed buildings by Israeli bombardments as seen inside the Gaza Strip from southern Israel. (AP)
Israeli airstrikes, meanwhile, killed at least 72 people in the war-ravaged territory on Thursday.
Israel initially delayed a vote Thursday on the ceasefire, blaming a last-minute dispute with Hamas for holding up the approval as rising tensions in Netanyahu’s government coalition raised concerns about the implementation of the deal just a day after U.S. President Joe Biden and key mediator Qatar announced it was complete.
Netanyahu’s office had accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement in an attempt to gain further concessions — without specifying which parts.
In a briefing on Thursday, David Mencer, an Israeli government spokesman, said Hamas’ new demands dealt with the deployment of Israeli forces in the Philadelphi corridor, the narrow strip bordering Egypt that Israeli troops seized in May.
Hamas denied the claims, with Izzat al-Rishq, a senior Hamas official, saying the militant group “is committed to the ceasefire agreement, which was announced by the mediators.”
The ceasefire agreement has drawn fierce resistance from Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners, on whose support the Israeli prime minister depends to remain in power. On Thursday, Israel’s hardline national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, threatened to quit the government if Israel approves the ceasefire.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said hostages would return home from Gaza. (AP)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty called on Israel and Hamas to implement a Gaza ceasefire plan “without any delay” in an exclusive interview Thursday with The Associated Press. Egypt has been a key mediator between the enemies for years and a leading player in ongoing ceasefire negotiations.
The deal announced Wednesday would see scores of hostages held in Gaza released and a pause in fighting with a view to eventually wind down a 15-month war that has destabilized the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests.
Hamas triggered the war with its October 7, 2023, cross-border attack into Israel that killed some 1200 people and took 250 others hostage.
Israel responded with a devastating offensive that has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and militants but say women and children make up more than half of those killed.
The military campaign has leveled vast swaths of Gaza, and pushed about 90 per cent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million from their homes. Hundreds of thousands are struggling with hunger and disease in squalid tent camps on the coast.
In pictures: Celebrations erupt after ceasefire announced
The Israeli prime minister faces great domestic pressure to bring home the hostages, whose families have pleaded with Netanyahu to prioritize the release of their loved ones over politics.
But Israeli divisions over the deal were on stark display Thursday, as Ben-Gvir, a key government coalition partner and Cabinet member, threatened to resign, saying the ceasefire was “reckless” and would “destroy all of Israel’s achievements.”
The departure of Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party would reduce the number of the ruling coalition’s seats in the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, from 68 to 62 — leaving Netanyahu’s government with just the slimmest of majorities. Ben-Gvir said his party would return to the coalition if Israel resumes its war.
Ben-Gvir’s resignation would not bring down the government or derail the ceasefire deal. But the move destabilizes the Israeli government at a delicate moment and could lead to the government’s collapse if Ben-Gvir is joined by other key Netanyahu allies.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, for instance, is vehemently opposed to the agreement and has demanded that Netanyahu promise to resume the war against Hamas after the first phase of the ceasefire as a condition of his party staying in the coalition.
