Israeli PM’s office says Gaza hostage release deal reached

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said a deal to return the hostages held in Gaza has been reached, after his office said earlier there were last minute snags in finalising a ceasefire that would pause 15 months of war.

Netanyahu said he would convene his security Cabinet later on Friday and then the government to approve the long-awaited deal.

Netanyahu’s pre-dawn statement appeared to clear the way for Israeli approval of the deal, which would pause the fighting in Gaza and see dozens of hostages held by militants in the Strip released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The deal would also allow hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to the remains of their homes in Gaza.

Netanyahu said he had instructed a special taskforce to prepare to receive the hostages returning from Gaza and that their families were informed the deal had been reached.

Israel had delayed a vote on the ceasefire on Thursday, blaming a last-minute dispute with Hamas for holding up approval as rising tensions in Netanyahu’s government coalition raised concerns about the implementation of the deal just a day after US President Joe Biden and key mediator Qatar announced it was complete.

Netanyahu’s office accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement in an attempt to gain further concessions.

In a briefing on Thursday, Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said Hamas’ new demands dealt with the deployment of Israeli forces in the Philadelphi corridor, the narrow strip bordering Egypt that Israeli troops seized in May.

Hamas denied the claims, with Izzat al-Rishq, a senior Hamas official, saying the militant group “is committed to the ceasefire agreement, which was announced by the mediators.”

The ceasefire agreement has drawn fierce resistance from Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners, which the Israeli prime minister depends on to remain in power.

On Thursday, Israel’s hard-line national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, threatened to quit the government if Israel approved the ceasefire.

There was no immediate comment from Ben-Gvir following Netanyahu’s latest announcement.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty called on Israel and Hamas to implement a Gaza ceasefire plan “without any delay” in an exclusive interview Thursday with The Associated Press.

Egypt has been a key mediator between the two enemies for years and a leading player in ongoing ceasefire negotiations.

The deal announced on Wednesday would pause the fighting with a view to eventually winding down a 15-month war that has destabilised the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests.

But it cannot be implemented until it is approved by both the security cabinet and the government.

Hamas triggered the war with its 7 October, 2023, cross-border attack into Israel that killed some 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage.

Israel responded with a devastating offensive that has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and militants but say women and children make up more than half of those killed.

The military campaign has levelled vast swathes of Gaza and forced around 90% of the Strip’s population of 2.3 million from their homes.

Hundreds of thousands are struggling with hunger and disease in squalid tent camps on the coast.