Israel and Hamas agree on hostage release and four-day truce

(Patria) - The Israeli government and Hamas have agreed on a four-day pause in fighting to allow the release of 50 hostages in Gaza in exchange for 150 Palestinians held in Israel and the entry of humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave, Reuters reported.

Officials from Qatar, which mediated the negotiations, as well as the United States, Israel, and Hamas, had been saying for days that an agreement was imminent. Hamas is believed to hold more than 200 hostages, taken when its fighters attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people.

A statement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said 50 women and children would be released during the four days, during which there would be a pause in fighting. For every additional 10 hostages released, the pause would be extended by one day, it said, without mentioning the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange.

“The Israeli government is committed to bringing all hostages home. Tonight, it approved the proposed deal as a first stage to achieve this goal,” the statement said, released after hours of deliberations closed to the press.

Hamas said 50 hostages would be released in exchange for 150 Palestinian women and children held in Israeli prisons. The truce agreement would also allow hundreds of trucks of humanitarian, medical, and fuel aid to enter Gaza, Hamas said.

The deal is the first truce in a war in which Israeli bombing has flattened parts of Gaza, killed 13,300 civilians, and left about two-thirds of the 2.3 million people homeless. Before convening with his full government, Netanyahu met with his war cabinet and broader national security cabinet on Tuesday. Before announcing the deal, Netanyahu said US President Joe Biden's intervention helped advance the agreement so that it included more hostages and fewer concessions. Netanyahu said that Israel's broader mission had not changed.

“We are at war and we will continue the war until we achieve all our goals. Destroy Hamas, return all our hostages, and ensure that no entity in Gaza can threaten Israel,” he said in a recorded message.

Israeli media report that the first hostage release is expected on Thursday. The implementation of the agreement must wait 24 hours to give Israeli citizens the opportunity to ask the Supreme Court to block the release of Palestinian prisoners, reports indicate.