As we wrote on Thursday, a new ceasefire and hostage deal was agreed to by both the nation of Israel and the Hamas terrorist group, which came after the nascent agreement looked like it might collapse almost as soon as the provisions were set, as reported a day earlier. RedState’s Bob Hoge wrote:
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On Thursday night, however, those disagreements were evidently solved as reports indicate that the deal has now officially been signed by Israel, Hamas, U.S. and Qatari officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been informed of the agreement and has instructed a meeting with his political-security cabinet, which would be followed by a government meeting to approve the plan, his office said in a statement translated from Hebrew to English.
“The families of the hostages were informed a short while ago of the agreements by the Directorate for Hostages, Missing Persons, and Returnees in the Prime Minister’s Office,” the statement said. “Additionally, the Prime Minister instructed the Coordinator for Prisoners and Missing Persons to coordinate preparations for the reception of the hostages upon their return to Israel.”
Currently, the Israeli government is set to vote on the measure on Saturday, which would delay the release of the first three hostages until Monday.
Government officials cited last-minute issues with Hamas for the delay.
This doesn’t mean everything is a done deal, though: Israel’s security cabinet, after which the government will convene to approve the deal.
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BREAKING: Ceasefire/Hostage Deal Officially Signed by Israel, Hamas, US and Qatari Officials
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Now, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has announced that the cabinet voted on and approved the deal, 24-8, and it is set to “go into effect on Sunday”:
Israel approved a cease-fire agreement with Hamas early Saturday, setting up the first reprieve in Gaza in over a year. Palestinians have celebrated the truce with the hope that it will finally end the devastating 15-month war, and Israelis are anxiously awaiting the return of scores of captives abducted by Hamas.
The full Israeli cabinet passed the agreement during a meeting that continued, unusually, into the Jewish Sabbath and into Saturday morning. Twenty-four ministers voted in favor of the deal and eight voted to oppose it, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Most of the ministers who voted against the deal belong to two far-right parties that had denounced the deal, the official said.
The Israeli government said it would go into effect on Sunday. Israeli civilians will have a short window to file objections, but the courts are widely expected to allow the agreement to go forward.
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Here’s the most recent information on how the ceasefire/hostage deal with roll out:
The cease-fire deal involves a complex array of Israeli withdrawals, security mechanisms and hostage-for-prisoner swaps. Under its terms, Israel and Hamas will observe a 42-day truce, during which Hamas will release 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. During the truce, both sides will negotiate the next phase: an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli forces.
As my colleagues noted, in part because it involves terrorists on one side, there isn’t a way to know exactly how long this ceasefire will last. We can only hope that the hostages will be freed in short order–or their bodies swiftly returned to their loved ones for respectful commemorations of their lives.
As this is a developing story, RedState will provide updates as they become available.
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