Technical details in the agreement on the hostage release deal that is expected to come into effect in the coming days are still unresolved. The Israeli negotiation team, headed by Mossad Chief David Barnea, will remain in Qatar overnight Wednesday to conclude the details on the deal's implementation, including the final list of Palestinian terrorists who will be freed.
More than a year after the previous hostage deal collapsed, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed al-Thani convened a press conference Wednesday night, in which he officially announced that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement under which the cease-fire will begin on Sunday at 12:15 p.m.
Protest for the return of the hostages on Begin Road in Tel Aviv
(Video: Motti Kimche)
Only after all the details have been finalized will the head of the National Security Council, Tzachi Hanegbi, summon the members of the Security Cabinet to approve the deal, and a full government meeting is expected to follow. The negotiating team will likely participate remotely from Qatar.
Although both the far-right Religious Zionist and Otzma Yehudit parties have said they would oppose the deal, it is expected to be approved in the government by a large majority. The final names of the terrorists to be freed will be released by the government secretariat on Thursday to allow opponents to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Women will initially be released in two rounds
If everything goes as planned, there is an expectation that the implementation of the deal will begin next week. Still, the schedule is dependent on the ability of Hamas to carry out the release of hostages.
According to the details of the deal, a six-week cease-fire will come into effect, during which the IDF will gradually withdraw from the central Gaza Strip, and displaced Palestinians will be allowed to return to the north. During this period, Israel will release 30 terrorists in exchange for each kidnapped civilian, and 50 terrorists for each female soldier released.
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Deal signed in Qatar for cease-fire, hostage release
(Photos: Jack Guez / AFP, Ronen Zvulun/Reuters)
The women will initially be released in two rounds, on the first day of the cease-fire, three women will be released, and on the seventh day four women will be released. Israel agreed with Hamas that the living hostages will be released first and only then the dead, out of a desire to release the living hostages as quickly as possible. So far, Hamas has not provided Israel with the list of the living hostages, and is supposed to provide this list on the seventh day of the cease-fire.
After the women and the two Bibas children are released, adults over the age of 50 are expected to be released, followed by the wounded men, including Yarden Bibas, the father of Kfir and Ariel. Only at the end of the process will the dead hostages be returned to Israel.
For the older hostages, Palestinian prisoners will be released at a ratio of 3:1 serving a life sentence, and another 27 prisoners for each sentenced to different terms. In addition, 50 wounded Hamas members will be allowed to cross daily through the Rafah crossing into Egypt with escorts, and each of them will be required to obtain permission from Israel and Egypt. Wounded civilians also will be allowed to leave.
In the sixth week of the cease-fire, Hamas is scheduled to release long-held hostages Hisham al-Sayed and Abra Mengistu – who will be released under the category of the sick and wounded – and Israel will release 47 prisoners from the Shalit deal in exchange for their release.
In total, 210 Palestinian minors and women will be released for five civilian hostages and the two Bibas children; 150 prisoners serving life sentences and 100 additional prisoners will be released for the five abducted female soldiers; 110 serving life sentences and 100 additional prisoners will be released for the nine sick and wounded hostages; 30 serving life sentences and 270 additional prisoners will be released for the 10 adult hostages; 60 prisoners and 47 released in the Shalit deal who were re-imprisoned will be released for Mengistu and al-Sayed; and 1,000 Palestinians who were detained since October 8 and did not participate in the massacre will be released.
A total of 290 life prisoners and 1,687 other prisoners and detainees will be released, but the final number depends on how many hostages return alive. Initially, Israel resisted releasing prisoners in exchange for dead bodies, but ultimately compromised on a limited release. The murderous terrorists will not be released to the West Bank but will be deported to a third country of their choice – Qatar, Turkey, Algeria or another country. Prisoners who do not have blood on their hands will be able to return to their homes in the West Bank. In addition, Israel is also preparing to return the bodies of Palestinian terrorists to Gaza.
During the first 42 days of the cease-fire, Israel will maintain a 700-meter security zone in the Gaza Strip, and will control the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors - but there will also be a gradual withdrawal of the IDF from the rest of Gaza areas. As part of the agreement, Gaza residents will be able to return to the northern Gaza Strip, but they will not be allowed to return armed or bring in weapons.
The deal includes security arrangements regarding a mechanism that will inspect vehicles and freight wagons on the Netzarim Corridor, which crosses the Strip at its width. According to the plan, an American company will carry out the inspection. On the seventh day, displaced persons will be allowed to return to the northern Gaza Strip, without weapons and without being searched. In addition, vehicles will be allowed to pass north, which will be inspected by a private company.
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Demonstrators for the return of the hostages on Begin Road in Tel Aviv
(Photo: Jack Guez / AFP )
As part of the agreement, there will be a significant increase in the amount of humanitarian aid that will be brought into Gaza, to about 600 trucks per day. Israel also agreed to stop intelligence gathering in Gaza during the days of the release of the hostages.
Negotiations on the second phase will begin by the 16th day of the first phase, during which all remaining live hostages, including the soldiers, are expected to be released - at which time a permanent cease-fire also will come into effect and there will be a full withdrawal of IDF forces. In the third phase, all dead hostages will be returned and, according to the agreement, the rehabilitation and rebuilding of the Strip will begin under the supervision of Egypt, Qatar and the UN.
The handshakes between the parties were delayed until the last minute, and even after the announcement that a deal had been reached, the Prime Minister's Office rushed to issue a clarification statement stating that "in light of Prime Minister Netanyahu's firm stance, Hamas backed down on its demand at the last minute to change the deployment of forces on the Philadelphi Corridor. However, there are still “a number of clauses in the hostage-ceasefire deal that have yet to be finally agreed upon," and that “the details will be finalized tonight.”
Prime Minister's spokesman Omer Dostri also noted that "the reports of a 'withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor' are a complete lie. Prime Minister Netanyahu has not given up a millimeter of Israeli control over the Philadelphi Corridor."
However, according to the disclosed agreement, Israel will gradually reduce its forces on the Philadelphi Corridor during the first phase of the deal - and will complete the withdrawal no later than the 50th day.
'Israel made it difficult, Hamas was the main obstacle'
After an agreement was reached on the details of the hostage deal, U.S. President Joe Biden, who had been involved in the negotiations for the past year, also officially announced that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement. Other senior American officials who were partners in the efforts also gave briefings and congratulated the sides on reaching the long-awaited goal.
A senior White House official involved in the talks shared behind-the-scenes details. "On May 27, President Biden presented the plan that led to a cease-fire in Gaza and the release in the first phase of women, children, the elderly, the wounded and the sick among the hostages."
In fact, the deal approved Wednesday night is similar to the one Biden presented last summer.
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President Joe Biden announced the deal from the White House
(Photo: Ken Cedeno/Reuters)
"We had intensive talks about this deal that was approved a few months ago," the official said, "but the talks stalled on August 31, when Hirsh Goldberg-Polin and five other hostages were killed in the tunnel in Rafah."
According to the official, after the murder of the six hostages , the Americans changed their strategy and focused on the northern border in order to "push out" Hezbollah. "Since October, we have been holding talks with Prime Minister Netanyahu and his national security team regarding the effects of the situation in Lebanon on the deal to release the hostages," the senior official said. "During an important visit on November 27, we reached a cease-fire agreement in Lebanon, which led to more intensive engagement in the arrangement for the release of the hostages in Gaza."
"On December 12, during a visit to Israel, we discussed for hours the acceleration of efforts," the official added. "The changes in the region, including the isolation of Hamas, helped to move forward. By the end of December, Hamas agreed to provide a list of 33 hostages for release, which allowed for progress. From January 5 until today, we have been working on the final details, including cease-fire agreements, force deployment, Hamas conditions, humanitarian aid and lists of Palestinian prisoners to be released."
Steve Witkoff, President-elect Donald Trump's designated Middle East envoy, who arrived in Israel on a surprise visit on Saturday, helped finalize the final details, the official said. "For an entire night until 3 a.m., the negotiating teams, the Americans, the Israelis, the Qataris and the Egyptians, were coordinating to ensure that the agreement could be completed Wednesday."
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller hinted at another briefing for reporters that the move to the second phase of the agreement is not certain. "To get from the first phase to the second phase, Egypt and Qatar need to push Hamas, and the U.S. needs to push Israel - these are promises that we cannot keep in the five days remaining until the new administration," Miller said.
"Therefore," Miller explained, "it is critical that all parties involved see that the United States is in the room and that when it makes promises, these are long-term promises. The involvement of President-elect Donald Trump's team in the negotiations was necessary to reach a signing. This was an unusual conduct and we greatly appreciate the team's involvement."
Miller also shared the difficulties that preceded reaching an agreement. "There were times when we came to the Israeli government and said, 'You're pushing too hard and we're asking you to back off,'" he said. A day after National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir admitted that Israel had torpedoed deals, Miller said that "there were times when Israel presented new conditions and new proposals that made it difficult to reach an agreement - just like Hamas did."
"That's the nature of negotiations," he said. "But in the last five, six months, it was Hamas that wasn't willing to negotiate - and for a period, after Sinwar's elimination , it couldn't either. We thought we were very close to a deal in July-August, but then we saw that Hamas simply wouldn't budge. Israel was willing to discuss and Hamas wasn't. Hamas was undoubtedly the main obstacle, especially since August."
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has frequently criticized Israel since the outbreak of the war, also welcomed the declaration of the cease-fire. "I commend the mediators – Egypt, Qatar and the United States – for their dedicated efforts in formulating the agreement," he said Wednesday evening. "Their uncompromising commitment to finding a diplomatic solution was critical to this achievement. I call on all parties to uphold their commitments and ensure that the agreement is fully implemented."
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In his official statement, the UN Secretary-General focused on "alleviating the immense suffering" caused to the Palestinians. "It is essential that the cease-fire removes the significant security and political obstacles that prevent the delivery of aid throughout Gaza, so that we can significantly increase the urgent humanitarian support that saves lives. The humanitarian situation is at catastrophic levels," he said.
"This agreement is a critical first step, but we must also harness all efforts to advance broader goals, including preserving the unity, contiguity and integrity of the occupied Palestinian territory," Guterres said. "I urge the parties and all relevant partners to seize this opportunity to establish a credible political path for a better future for Palestinians, Israelis and the region."
He said: "Ending the occupation and achieving an agreed-upon two-state solution, in which Israel and Palestine live side-by-side in peace and security, in accordance with international law, relevant UN resolutions and previous agreements, remains an urgent priority. Only through a viable two-state solution can the aspirations of both peoples be realized."