New York: With Donald Trump’s inauguration as US President just days away, the world is anxiously waiting for a much-awaited ceasefire agreement in Gaza to end the devastating 15-month war, coming Sunday (subject to approval by Israel's Cabinet and Supreme Court).
Although Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Palestinian militant group Hamas of backtracking on some details of a Gaza ceasefire deal, Hamas reaffirmed its commitment to a ceasefire agreement with Israel.
The Israeli cabinet session to ratify the agreement has been delayed, according to Israeli public radio. Negotiators remain in Doha, working to finalize the list of Palestinian prisoners slated for release, even after Qatar announced a breakthrough agreement.
Qatar's Prime Minister confirmed that the ceasefire in Gaza will begin on January 19 and 33 Israeli hostages will be released in the first phase of the truce, according to reports.
Meanwhile, violence has escalated. Palestinian civil defense officials reported that at least 77 Palestinians, including 21 children and 25 women, were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza this week. These strikes occurred despite Qatar's announcement of a ceasefire.
In a press conference in Doha, where the truce talks were held. Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said the agreement includes the exchange of hostages and prisoners and a return to sustainable calm that would lead to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
The agreement, reached with the mediation of the US, Egypt, and Qatar, will halt the ongoing violence in Gaza, facilitate vital humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians, and bring home hostages who have been held captive for over 15 months.
Reflecting on the challenging path to this agreement, US President Joe Biden remarked that this was one of the toughest negotiations he has ever experienced.
The war on Gaza broke out after Hamas orchestrated the deadliest-ever attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians. Hamas also took 251 people from Israel hostage during the attack, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
In response, Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The fighting has left much of Gaza in ruins and displaced most of the enclave's pre-war population of 2.3 million.
