Creator: scaliger | Credit: Getty Images
(Gaza) — Israel and Hamas are in agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza and a hostage deal. The news was announced by Qatar on Wednesday (Jan. 15, 2025). It comes as the two sides have been fighting for 15 months in the Gaza Strip after Hamas attacked Israel in October of 2023.
The deal is set to go into effect on Sunday and includes Hamas releasing dozens of hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Delegations from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar worked to secure the end to the fighting. President-elect Trump had repeatedly warned that “all hell will break out” if a deal wasn’t reached before he took office. President Biden said the elements of the deal are the same as what he laid out last May. He added the agreement will provide needed humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
A senior Hamas official has reportedly shared with the BBC a list of 34 hostages that the Palestinian group says it is willing to release in the first stage of a potential ceasefire agreement with Israel. It’s not clear how many of them are still alive. All but two were captured during Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. The ages of those on the list range from just one year old to 86, including children who Hamas previously said had been killed in an Israeli air strike. A number of hostages who Hamas says are sick are also on the list.
