Israel and Hamas have agreed to a four-day temporary truce so that hostages held in Gaza can be exchanged for a number of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Based on the terms, 50 hostages held in Gaza and 150 Palestinian women and children would be released over the course of the four days, with the potential for further rounds of cease-fire so that more prisoner swaps could be made. As many as 100 hostages could be freed by the end of the month if the parties can extend the deal to exchange hostages for a pause in fighting, according to Reuters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the Palestinians could earn an additional day of cease-fire for every 10 hostages released over the currently contemplated 50, per CNN. Hamas is reportedly holding 239 captives from 26 countries inside Gaza who were abducted during the October 7 surprise attack on Israel.
Three American hostages are expected to be among the first 50 released, including 3-year-old Abigail Mor Idan, who was orphaned by the Hamas attack on October 7, per ABC News.
The agreement was reached through the mediation of Qatar, whose previous diplomatic intercession resulted in the release of four captive women earlier in the conflict. The Arab country’s lead negotiator, Minister of State Mohammad Al-Khulaifi, said he hoped the international community would “seize this brief window of opportunity to generate further momentum for the diplomatic track.”
Qatar released a statement with more details about the pause in fighting, including that “a larger number of humanitarian convoys and relief aid” would enter Gaza during the truce, per CNN.
Al-Khulaifi noted that, according to the agreement, there would be “no attack whatsoever. No military movements, no expansion, nothing” during the truce, as Reuters reported.
Also, the U.S. and Israel will both pause drone flights over Gaza for six-hour periods each day of the truce, Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer told CNN.
However, until the cease-fire is implemented, the fighting goes on as Israel continues its response to the Hamas terrorist attack that killed 1,200 people inside Israel. Al-Jazeera has reported that more than 14,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the Israeli military response began.
