Israel and Hamas have agreed to stop fighting for four days and release at least 50 hostages, including women and children, held in Gaza. Qatar, who helped with the negotiations, announced this on Wednesday.
The agreement, which depended on Israel’s cabinet agreeing, comes after several weeks of discussions with the United States and Egypt. This is a big step to reduce tensions after almost seven weeks of fighting between Israel and Hamas.
Qatar said that the hostages will be set free if Israeli jails release some Palestinian women and children.
The break will also let more humanitarian trucks and supplies, like fuel for helping people, to come in.
Israel’s leaders agreed to the deal very early on Wednesday morning after a long and intense meeting that lasted about six hours.
Hamas has 239 people captive in Gaza, and they come from 26 different countries, according to the Israeli military.
Only a few Israeli hostages were released before the agreement. On October 20, two Americans named Judith Tai Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter Natalie Raanan were let go because of their health conditions. This happened after talks between Qatar and Hamas.
Shortly after, two women from Israel, named Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifshitz, were also set free.
Qatar’s main negotiator, Minister of State Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, said that the agreement should make the world work together quickly to keep making progress in peace talks.
Hamas said in a statement that 150 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails would be released as part of the deal, but later took back the statement without giving a reason.
Israel said the truce could last longer than planned if more hostages are released. For every 10 more hostages freed, an extra day of truce would be added.
However, it also showed that Israel intends to start their air and ground attacks again to fully get rid of Hamas once the hostage releases are finished.
The Israeli army is still figuring out when they will stop fighting. Colonel Jonathan Conricus spoke to CNN on Wednesday morning.
“We will keep fighting Hamas until the Israeli government tells us to stop. When they do, we will follow their instructions. ”
The Israeli government made the deal because the families of the hostages pressured them to take action. They wanted answers from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
A lot of hostages were taken by force when Hamas attacked border communities near the Gaza Strip and the Nova music festival.
Israel stopped things from coming into Gaza and attacked it. This caused a big problem for the people there.
Over 12,000 people have died in Gaza since October 7, according to the government’s press office.
Family members of the hostages held by Hamas were relieved and hopeful as they waited to see if their loved ones would be released. They were not sure yet when it would happen.
Shoshany said, “I really hope to see someone come out of there alive. ” We want to see our family again. This is all we want and I really hope this is just the beginning in this situation.
Liz Hirsh Naftali, who is Abigail Edan’s great-aunt, said on CNN that it has been really hard having Abigail, a 3-year-old US citizen, held by Hamas.
“We’ve been worrying, wondering, praying, and hoping for the past seven weeks,” she said.
The family wants Abigail, the youngest American kidnapped by Hamas, to come home by Friday for her fourth birthday.
“We have to see Abigail come out before we can believe it,” Naftali said.
US President Joe Biden was happy about the agreement and said it will bring back more American hostages. He promised to keep working until all hostages are released.
Ten Americans are still missing. Among them are two women and a 3-year-old girl. This was confirmed by a senior official in the government. The person in charge did not say the girl’s name.
The agreement says at least 50 hostages will be freed, but it also encourages the release of everyone, the official said.
The agreement for the hostages includes a break, a pause to help people, for four or five days. “And if more hostages are released by Hamas, there is a possibility that the extension could be prolonged,” the official said.
A US official also said that the hostages will be brought out from different places, but they didn’t give any more information.
The IDF spokesperson, Conricus, said that the people who will be let go in the agreement are all Israelis. Some of them also have citizenship in another country. He said that the Palestinian prisoners who are going to be freed are not very bad criminals.
Approximately 8,300 Palestinian people are in Israeli jails, according to Qadura Fares, who leads a group that helps prisoners.
Out of 8,300 people, over 3,000 are being kept in detention in Israel without being told the reasons or having a legal process.