Hamas will release first hostages under Gaza ceasefire deal, Israel says

Hamas is expected to release the first hostages under the ceasefire agreement in Gaza on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Friday.

If successful, the ceasefire will halt the fighting that has leveled much of Gaza, killed more than 46,000 people and displaced many times over the majority of the small enclave’s pre-war population of 2.3 million, according to the local authorities.

Israel’s cabinet will meet to give final approval to a deal with the militant group Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages, Netanyahu’s office said on Friday, following fears that the deal could be delayed.

In the Gaza Strip, Israeli warplanes continued intense attacks, and the civil emergency service said Friday that at least 101 people, including 58 women and children, had been killed since the deal was announced.

Given the long-standing divisions among the ministers, Israel postponed meetings scheduled for Thursday, when the government was due to vote on the pact, blaming Hamas for the delay.

Hamas said it was committed to the agreement.

But in the early hours of Friday, Netanyahu’s office said approval was imminent and that the narrow security cabinet would meet on Friday ahead of a plenary cabinet meeting to ratify the deal.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was informed by the negotiating team that agreements have been reached for the release of the hostages,” his office said in a statement.

Source: Terra

Rose

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