Gaza Hostage and Ceasefire Deal Officially Signed

The agreement between Israel and Hamas to release hostages being held in Gaza and begin a ceasefire was officially signed by negotiators in Doha on Thursday, according to two sources familiar with the issue. But the Israeli government isn’t expected to vote on it until Saturday night.

Why it matters: The delay in the vote will postpone the start of the ceasefire and the release of the first three hostages from Sunday to at least Monday, according to Israeli officials.

The latest: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was updated by the negotiations team that an agreement was reached, his office said in a statement on Friday morning local time.

• Netanyahu ordered the hostage coordinator to work with relevant government ministries to prepare for the release of the hostages.

Also See: Israel and Hamas Agree on Ceasefire Agreement, But Major Challenges Lie Ahead

Driving the news: The Israeli security cabinet was supposed to convene on Thursday morning to vote on the agreement, but several last minute disputes in the negotiations in Doha delayed the official signing of the agreement a day.

• A U.S. official said that on Wednesday night, after the deal was announced, there was a disagreement about the final list of Palestinian prisoners to be released as part of the deal.
• Hamas demanded to swap several names on the list for military leaders of the militant group who are serving multiple life sentences for planning and orchestrating suicide bombings, Israeli and U.S. officials said.
• Israel had earlier used the veto it has as part of the deal to block their release but Hamas brought them up again as a new demand in the negotiations.

• President Biden’s Middle East envoy Brett McGurk, President-elect Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and Qatari and Egyptian mediators worked for several hours in Doha to resolve the issue.

“In the end it was a tempest in a teapot,” a U.S. official said.

• Even after the issue was resolved it took another several hours for the ceasefire agreement to be officially signed.
• The deal was signed by officials from Israel, Qatar and Hamas, a source with knowledge said. President Biden’s top Middle East adviser Brett McGurk signed the deal for the U.S.

Between the lines: While the deal continued to be negotiated in Doha, Netanyahu’s ultranationalist coalition government partners — Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir said they would vote against the deal.

• Netanyahu met Smotrich on Thursday, urged him not to resign and briefed him about his discussions with the incoming Trump administration about the deal, a source with knowledge said.
• Ben Gvir held a press conference and announced he would resign and his party would leave the coalition if the deal is approved by the Israeli cabinet. He said he would be ready to rejoin the coalition if Israel were to resume fighting in Gaza after the 42-day ceasefire in the first phase of the deal.
• The Likud issued a statement attacking Ben Gvir and accusing him for trying to topple the right-wing government.

The big picture: The Likud statement claimed the agreement includes guarantees from the U.S. that it would allow Israel to resume the war and to receive weapons from the U.S.

• Trump’s national security adviser Mike Waltz said on CNN on Wednesday that the incoming administration made it clear to Netanyahu that if Hamas reneges on any part of the deal, the U.S. will back Israel.
• Waltz also said the Trump administration will ensure Gaza is demilitarized and Hamas is destroyed.

What to watch: The Israeli security cabinet is expected to convene on Friday morning to vote on the deal, Israeli officials said. The full cabinet will then convene on Saturday night.

• Under Israeli law, Palestinian prisoners can’t be released from prison without a government vote. If the deal is approved, there will be a 24-hour period for the public to appeal to the court.
• Netanyahu is expected to have a majority in both votes, even if Smotrich, Ben Gvir and the cabinet ministers from their parties vote against the deal.

• Netanyahu’s aide said that because of the schedule, the ceasefire and the release of the hostages would be delayed from Sunday to Monday.

Zoom in: According to the agreement, 33 hostages will be released in the first phase of the deal, including women, children, men over the age of 50 and men under the age of 50 who are wounded or sick. Israel’s assessment is that most of those 33 hostages are alive.

• The hostages will be released gradually throughout the first phase of the agreement, beginning on the first day of the six-week ceasefire in Gaza.

During the first phase, Israeli Defense Forces will also gradually withdraw to a buffer zone in Gaza near the border with Israel. The IDF will leave the Netzarim corridor in the center of the Gaza Strip and most of the Philadelphi corridor on the border between Gaza and Egypt.

• Palestinians will also be allowed to return to northern Gaza during the first phase of the deal. Those who walk won’t go through security checks but vehicles will be checked by Qatari and Egyptian officials to ensure no heavy weapons are transferred to Gaza.

More than 700 Palestinian prisoners will also be released, including about 275 who are accused of murdering Israelis and are serving life sentences. Another thousand Palestinians from Gaza who were detained by the IDF during the war but didn’t participate in the Oct. 7 attack will also be released.

• The exact number of prisoners to be released will be determined only after Hamas clarifies which of the hostages to be released are alive, Israeli official said.
• From the first day of the ceasefire, 600 aid trucks, including 50 fuel trucks, will enter Gaza every day. In addition, 200,000 tents and 60,000 mobile homes will be delivered for displaced Palestinians in Gaza.
• The agreement stipulates that Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. will serve as guarantors for the implementation of the agreement.

On the 16th day of the ceasefire, Israel and Hamas will begin negotiations on the second phase of the signed agreement, which is supposed to include the release of the remaining hostages and a permanent ceasefire and complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

This news is sourced from Axios and is intended for informational purposes only.