.theguardian - 3 days ago

Ceasefire supposed to begin immediately after early Friday’s cabinet approval under deal, says Israeli officialIsrael’s government has ratified a plan for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas in a key step towards ending the devastating two-year war.Senior officials in Washington said a US military team of 200 people would be deployed in the region to “oversee” the truce after Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of the Trump administration’s plan to halt the fighting.Hamas’ exiled Gaza chief Khalil Al-Hayya said he had received guarantees from the US and other mediators that the war was over.The head of the US military’s Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, would initially have 200 people on the ground, a senior US official said. “His role will be to oversee, observe, make sure there are no violations.”Egyptian, Qatari, Turkish and probably Emirati military officials would be embedded in the team, the US official said. A second official said that “no US troops are intended to go into Gaza”.Israeli strikes continued in the hours leading up to the Israeli cabinet’s vote. Explosions were seen on Thursday in northern Gaza, and a strike on a building in Gaza City killed at least two people and left more than 40 trapped under rubble, according to Palestinian civil defence.At least 11 dead Palestinians and another 49 who were wounded arrived at hospitals over the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said.Israel was hitting targets that posed a threat to its troops as they reposition, said an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Hamas blasted Israel over the strike, saying Netanyahu was trying to “shuffle the cards and confuse” efforts by mediators to end the war.Twenty Israeli hostages are still believed to be alive in Gaza, while 26 are presumed dead, and the fate of two is unknownThe Trump administration broader 20-point ceasefire plan includes many unanswered questions, such as whether and how Hamas will disarm. But both sides appeared closer than they have been in months to ending the war, which was triggered by Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, promoting an Israeli response that has left more than 67,000 Palestinians dead and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza’s health ministry.Al Jazeera reports that the US military will set up a task force of 200 troops, although they will not be entering the enclave, White House sources say.The IDF said Mordechai Nachmani, a 26-year-old reservist soldier, was killed in a Hamas sniper attack in Gaza City on Thursday afternoon. This came after Israeli and Hamas negotiators signed a deal in Egypt to secure the release of the hostages, however the ceasefire part of the agreement had not yet taken place.Israeli outlet Haaretz has published the names of Palestinian prisoners it believes could be released as part of the new deal. 250 Palestinian prisoners who are serving life sentences are expected to be released as part of the agreement, out of approximately 290 currently held in Israeli prison. 22 children will also be freed. Continue reading...

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