Israel, Hamas agree to ceasefire amid hopes for lasting calm in Gaza

Palestinians in Gaza on Jan 15 celebrated the ceasefire announcement while expressing hope that it will bring lasting peace in the war-torn Gaza region after mediators confirmed an initial six-week ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel.

The truce is set to take effect from Jan 19.

Israeli forces, however, continued with their attacks across the Gaza Strip, killing dozens of Palestinians in the enclave since the agreement was announced on Jan 15.

The civilian killings come as the Israeli cabinet prepares to vote on the deal on Jan 16. Nevertheless, the news of the ceasefire deal sparked jubilation in Gaza, where Palestinians have faced severe shortages of food, water, shelter, and fuel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Jan 15 thanked US President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump for their “assistance in advancing” an agreement to end “the suffering of dozens of hostages and their families”.

The complex ceasefire accord between Israel and militant group Hamas, which controls Gaza, emerged after months of mediation by Qatar, Egypt, and the US and 15 months of bloodshed that devastated the coastal territory and inflamed the Middle East.

The deal outlines a six-week initial ceasefire with the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, where tens of thousands have been killed. Hostages taken by Hamas would be freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

"This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much-needed humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity," U.S. President Joe Biden said in Washington.

At a news conference in Doha, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim bin Jabr Al Thani said the ceasefire would take effect on Jan 19. Negotiators are working with Israel and Hamas on steps to implement the agreement, he said.

However, Netanyahu said that a ceasefire agreement was still incomplete and the final details were being worked out.

Netanyahu's statement came hours after US President Joe Biden and Qatar's PM announced the deal, which would pause the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clear the way for the release of dozens of hostages.

Earlier, Qatar's Prime Minister confirmed that the ceasefire in Gaza will begin on Jan 19 and 33 Israeli hostages will be released in the first phase of the truce, according to news agency AFP.

Hamas official Izzat al-Risheq in a statement said that the deal reached in the Qatari capital, Doha, and almost met all of the Palestinian group’s conditions, including the full withdrawal of Israeli forces, the return of displaced people to their homes and a permanent end to the war.

The US, Egypt, and Qatar have spent the past year trying to mediate an end to the war sparked by Hamas' attack on Israel in October 2023. During months of on-off talks, the two sides have previously said they were close to a ceasefire only to hit last-minute obstacles.

The war on Gaza broke out after Hamas orchestrated the deadliest-ever attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of around 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, and 34 are dead, according to the Israeli military.

In response, Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, and wounded 110,265 since October 7, 2023, 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.

Gaza’s Government Media Office in a statement said that the Gaza Strip needs at least 1,000 humanitarian trucks daily just to help the Palestinian economy recover and provide some sort of relief for families, who have been going through high rates of food insecurity over the past year.

“The Gaza Strip needs more food, more humanitarian items, and … all sorts of medical equipment following the destruction of Gaza’s hospitals in the north and in Gaza City, too,” it added.

Celebrations in Gaza

In social media posts, some Gaza residents urged Palestinians to exercise extra caution in the belief Israel could step up attacks in the next few days to maximize gains before the ceasefire starts.

Nevertheless, Palestinians celebrated the ceasefire move. In Khan Younis, throngs clogged the streets amid the sounds of horns as they cheered, waved Palestinian flags, and danced.

"I am happy. Yes, I am crying, but those are tears of joy," Ghada, a displaced mother of five was quoted as saying.

In Tel Aviv, families of Israeli hostages and their friends likewise welcomed the news, saying in a statement they felt "overwhelming joy and relief (about) the agreement to bring our loved ones home."

In a social media statement announcing the ceasefire, Hamas called the pact "an achievement for our people" and "a turning point."

If successful, the ceasefire will halt fighting that has razed much of heavily urbanized Gaza, killed over 46,000 people, and displaced most of the tiny enclave's pre-war population of 2.3 million, according to Gaza authorities.

That, in turn, could defuse tensions across the wider Middle East, where the war has stoked conflict in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iraq, and raised fears of all-out war between arch-regional foes Israel and Iran.

With 98 Israeli hostages remaining in Gaza, phase one of the deal entails the release of 33 of them, including all women, children, and men over 50. Two American hostages, Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen, were among those to be released in the first phase, a source was quoted as saying.

‘Last minute snag’

The talks between the two sides had reportedly hit a last-minute snag. Israel claimed that Hamas tried to “change agreed-upon understandings for security arrangements” along Gaza's border with Egypt.

Qatar’s Prime Minister, who has been mediating the Gaza ceasefire, met separately with Hamas and Israeli delegations, and shortly afterward, the dispute was resolved.

Earlier on Jan 15, the Israeli military, the Shin Bet, and the air force attacked about 50 targets throughout Gaza over the last 24 hours.

Israeli strikes killed at least 13 Palestinians across the enclave. Those included seven people who were in a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza City, and six others killed in separate airstrikes on houses in Deir Al-Balah, Bureij camp, and Rafah, medics were quoted as saying.