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5 days ago

Israel-Hamas ceasefire live: Netanyahu says Israel will sign Gaza deal after last-minute issues resolved

Hamas and Israel reportedly ironed out a final stumbling block in negotiations relating to Palestinian prisoners

Bel Trew
Tel Aviv
,Sam Kiley,Alex Croft,Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Friday 17 January 2025 04:18 GMT
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Israel accuses Hamas of backtracking on ceasefire deal

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Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu today said a deal to return hostages held in the Gaza Strip has been reached, after his office had said earlier there were last-minute snags in finalising the ceasefire.

Netanyahu said he would convene his security cabinet later today following which the government will approve the long-awaited hostage deal.

His pre-dawn statement comes as Israel continued to bomb Gaza, killing at least 72 Palestinians on Thursday.Meanwhile, some protesters in Jerusalem have rallied against the Gaza ceasefire deal, lighting bonfires and expressing their anger at what they say is an act of surrender.

But pro-ceasefire crowds in Israel embraced one another as news emerged that the momentous ceasefire and hostage deal had been agreed.

Coming into effect on Sunday, it will bring an end to 15-months of devastation in Gaza - which has seen more than 46,000 Palestinians killed, according to Palestinian authorities - and the release of the Israeli hostages that still live.

Negotiators successfully addressed last-minute issues which arose on Thursday, a US official told Axios.

5 days ago

Who are remaining hostages and when might they be freed?

More than a year after Hamas attacked southern Israel on 7 October 2023 – killing around 1,200 people and taking another 250 captive – 94 hostages still remain, although Israel believe around a third are dead.

The official Israeli figure for the total number of people still held in Gaza is 98, although this also includes four who were taken in 2014 and 2015, with two of those believed to be dead. A ceasefire deal announced on Wednesday promises the release of the hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian militant factions in Gaza.

The first stage of the ceasefire will last six weeks and see “a full and complete ceasefire” while 33 hostages in Gaza and up to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israel would be freed. The hostages released will include women, the elderly and the sick.

Read more here:

Israel-Hamas ceasefire: Who are remaining hostages and when might they be freed?

More than 250 foreign and Israeli hostages taken by Hamas in the 7 October attack, according to Israel, with 94 still in Gaza

Tara Cobham16 January 2025 14:40
5 days ago

Hamas added further demands after deal was agreed - Israeli spokesperson

Hamas has “added further demands” which have contradicted elements of the initial deal, an Israeli government spokesperson has said in a briefing.

The Palestinian group has “reneged on this hostage release agreement and has created a last minute crisis in an effort to extort last minute concessions,” spokesperson David Mercer said, adding that the Israeli cabinet therefore “cannot meet to agree this deal”.

Mr Mercer continued: “The negotiating team is continuing its efforts to reach a conclusion,” he added saying that negotiators were still in Doha. “No official announcement will be made by Israel about the success of these negotiations and the subsequent cabinet meeting until we…. have a finalised agreement.”

“Hamas have made changes even after the agreement was agreed. The mediators know this and confirmed this as well, and they are trying to extract further compromises from Israel.

“This hostage release, if it happens… the primary function of this hostage release deal is to get our people home,” he said in reply to a question about what changes Hamas were trying to make. He did not elaborate any further on the details.

“Hamas have been making changes to the agreement which has already been agreed.”

Alex Croft16 January 2025 14:21

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