Tehran, IRNA – Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas and the Israeli regime have agreed to a deal that will halt the Gaza war and lead to a prisoner swap between the two sides.
In a statement that confirmed the agreement, Hamas said on Wednesday night that the ceasefire agreement is the result of the resilience of the Palestinian people and resistance fighters.
Hamas called the deal an achievement for the Palestinian people, resistance groups, the Islamic world and freedom-seekers across the globe. It said the ceasefire agreement stems from the movement’s responsibility towards the people of Gaza to stop the Zionist enemy’s genocidal war and bloodshed against them.
The movement also said in an earlier statement that it had delivered its response to mediators on a proposed agreement for the ceasefire in Gaza.
“The movement dealt with all responsibility and positivity, based on its responsibility towards our patient and steadfast people in the honorable Gaza Strip, by stopping the Zionist aggression against them, and putting an end to the massacres and war of genocide to which they are being subjected,” said the statement.
Negotiations to reach an agreement have been taking place with the mediation of the US, Qatar and Egypt.
Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, whose country hosted the ceasefire negotiations, has said that Hamas and Israel have agreed to halt the war in Gaza. He said the deal would go into effect on Sunday, January 19.
In a press conference held in Doha on Wednesday night, the Qatari PM said that Hamas agreed to release 33 Israeli prisoners in exchange for Palestinian prisoners during the first phase of the agreement, which will last six weeks.
He said that details of the second and third phases of the agreement will be determined after the first phase is completed.
Teams from Egypt, the US and Qatar will monitor the implementation of the deal, the senior Qatari official said, adding that a follow-up mechanism will be formed for that purpose.
While Hamas and Qatar have confirmed the ceasefire agreement, there has been no official reaction from the Israeli regime as of yet. Hours earlier, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "several unresolved points" remain in the ceasefire deal, but expects them to be settled “tonight.”
According to Reuters news agency, citing an official familiar with the ceasefire talks, the first phase of the agreement would also see the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from central Gaza, and Palestinians’ return to their homes in the north of the strip.
A ceasefire deal puts an end to more than 15 months of Israeli genocide in Gaza where at least 46,707 Palestinians were killed and 110,265 others wounded.
Israel invaded Gaza on October 7, 2023 following the unprecedented Al Aqsa Storm Operation by Hamas on the southern parts of the occupied territories earlier that day.
Following the announcement of the ceasefire deal, Hamas's chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya said that the Al Aqsa Storm Operation marked a pivotal moment in the history of the Palestinian cause. He praised the steadfastness of the Palestinian people and the bravery of their resistance fighters for thwarting the enemy’s plans, and that the people of Gaza will not forget those who participated in the genocide.
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