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Israel and Hamas have agreed to a deal to halt the war in Gaza and release remaining hostages, raising hopes of ending the bloodiest round of fighting in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The multi-stage deal was reached just days before Donald Trump took office as US president. Trump warned that “there will be a heavy price to pay” if the hostages are not released before taking office on Monday, injecting new impetus into long-stalled negotiations.
“We have reached a deal for the hostages in the Middle East. They will be released soon,” Trump posted on his Truth social platform on Wednesday. “Thank you!”
A person familiar with the talks in Doha said the agreement was reached after Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani met with Hamas and Israeli negotiators separately to ultimately push for a deal.
Israel and Hamas have repeatedly tried to broker a deal to end the 15-month conflict and secure the release of the 98 Israeli hostages still in Gaza (not Everyone is still alive).
The first phase of the deal will involve a 42-day truce during which 33 Israeli hostages – including children, all female prisoners, the sick and the elderly – will be released in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons and a dramatic increase Humanitarian aid delivered to Gaza.
No later than the 16th day of the truce, the two sides will begin negotiating a second phase of the deal, during which remaining hostages, including male soldiers, will be released in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners.
The second phase should also lead to a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
The final phase will include the return of all remaining bodies and the reconstruction of Gaza under the supervision of Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations.
Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack was the deadliest since the Holocaust, while Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza set off a year of hostilities that changed the dynamics of the Middle East.
Palestinian militants have killed 1,200 people and taken another 250 hostages in attacks on Israel, according to Israeli officials.
The Israeli offensive has killed more than 46,000 people, reduced much of Gaza to rubble and worsened the humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged enclave, according to Palestinian officials.
Israel has launched a war on multiple fronts as Iran-backed militants, including the Lebanese armed movement Hezbollah, began firing on Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians. It conducted its first direct missile strikes with Iran, invaded southern Lebanon and launched bombing attacks in Syria and Yemen.
