Israel’s Cabinet approves deal for Gaza cease-fire and the release of dozens of hostages

JERUSALEM —  Israel’s Cabinet approved a deal early Saturday for a cease-fire in Gaza that would release dozens of hostages held there and pause the 15-month war with Hamas, bringing the sides a step closer to ending their deadliest and most destructive fighting ever.

The government announced the approval after 1 a.m. Jerusalem time and confirmed the cease-fire will go into effect Sunday. The hourslong meeting of the full Cabinet went well past the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath, in a reflection of the moment’s importance. In line with Jewish law, the Israeli government usually halts all business for the Sabbath except in emergency cases of life or death.

Mediators Qatar and the U.S. had announced the cease-fire on Wednesday, but the deal hung in limbo as Netanyahu insisted there were last-minute snags he blamed on the Hamas militant group. There was some pushback from those in Israel’s far right.

World & Nation

Cease-fire deal reached between Israel and Hamas in Gaza

A cease-fire deal, announced by U.S. and Qatari mediators, promises to end more than a year of conflict in Gaza Strip. Some Israeli hostages would be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners under the agreement.

Jan. 15, 2025

Key questions remain about the cease-fire — the second achieved during the war — including the names of the 33 hostages to be released during the six-week first phase of the cease-fire and who among them is still alive.

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

Hundreds of Palestinian detainees are to be released as well. Israel’s justice ministry published a list of 95 Palestinian prisoners to be freed in the deal’s first phase and said the release will not begin before 4 p.m. local time Sunday. All people on the list are younger or female.

Israel’s Prison Services said it will transport the prisoners instead of the International Committee of the Red Cross, which handled transportation during the first cease-fire, to avoid “public expressions of joy.” The prisoners have been accused of crimes such as incitement, vandalism, supporting terror, terror activities, attempted murder or throwing stones or Molotov cocktails.

The devastated Gaza Strip should see a surge in humanitarian aid. Trucks carrying aid lined up Friday on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing into Gaza. An Egyptian official said an Israeli delegation from the military and Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency arrived Friday in Cairo to discuss the reopening of the crossing. An Israeli official confirmed a delegation was going to Cairo. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private negotiations.

Israeli forces will pull back from many areas, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians would be able to return to what’s left of their homes, and there will be a surge of humanitarian assistance.

Israel’s military said that as its forces gradually withdraw, residents will not be allowed to return to areas where troops are present or near the Israel-Gaza border, and any threat to Israeli forces “will be met with a forceful response.”

Hamas triggered the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border attack into Israel in which it killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 others captive. Nearly 100 hostages remain.

Israel responded with devastating air and ground attacks that have killed more than 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.

Fighting continued into Friday, and Gaza’s Health Ministry said 88 bodies had arrived at hospitals over 24 hours. In previous conflicts, both sides have stepped up military operations in the final hours before cease-fires as a way to project strength.

The remainder of the hostages, including male soldiers, are to be released in a second — and much more difficult — phase that will be negotiated during the first.

Hamas has said it will not release the remaining captives without a lasting cease-fire and a full Israeli withdrawal, while Israel has vowed to keep fighting until it dismantles the group and to maintain open-ended security control over the territory.

Longer-term questions about postwar Gaza remain, including who will rule the territory or oversee the daunting task of reconstruction.

The conflict has destabilized the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests. It also highlighted political tensions inside Israel, drawing fierce resistance from Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners.

Israel’s hard-line national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, had threatened to quit the government if Israel approved the cease-fire. He reiterated that on Friday, writing on social media platform X: “If the ‘deal’ passes, we will leave the government with a heavy heart.” There was no immediate sign early Saturday that he had done so.

Ben-Gvir’s resignation would not bring down the government or derail the deal, but the move would destabilize the government at a delicate moment and could eventually lead to its collapse if Ben-Gvir were joined by other key Netanyahu allies.

Associated Press writers Magdy reported from Cairo; Shurafa from Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip; and Federman from Jerusalem. AP writers Sam Mednick in Jerusalem and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.