A long-awaited hostage-release and cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza will be voted on this weekend, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced Friday.
Netanyahu’s office said the Israeli security cabinet would meet Friday to discuss the deal, which involves the halting of hostilities and release of dozens of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, then the wider government would vote to approve it Saturday night, according to Israeli media.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu expressed his appreciation for the negotiating team and all those who assisted,” his office wrote on social media Friday, adding the families of hostages had been informed about the deal.
Setbacks at the eleventh hour threatened to derail the agreement Thursday, with Netanyahu’s office accusing Hamas of trying to “extort last minute concessions.”
Israel also launched airstrikes on Gaza overnight on Thursday after the cease-fire had been announced, killing at least 73 people, according to local authorities in Gaza.
Along with the release of hostages, the deal — which arrives after 15 months of war — will allow Gazans to return to what remains of their homes and permit massive amounts of aid to flow into the ravaged territory. Israeli troops will also pull back as the fighting stops.
Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack, which killed 1,200 Israelis. More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the fighting broke out, with some estimates of the death toll ranging higher.
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