🔴 Israel and Hamas reach Gaza ceasefire agreement and hostage release deal

‘We have a deal’: Trump hails Gaza peace accord

US President-elect Donald Trump said on Wednesday that a deal had been reached to release hostages held in Gaza.

His comments, made on his Truth Social platform, came after an official said that Israel and Hamas had reached a ceasefire deal in the Gaza war.

“WE HAVE A DEAL FOR THE HOSTAGES IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THEY WILL BE RELEASED SHORTLY,” Trump wrote.

Gaza deal includes six-week initial ceasefire phase, release of hostages, official says

A Gaza deal between Israel and Hamas announced by mediators Wednesday outlines a six-week initial ceasefire phase and includes the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces and release of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian detainees held by Israel, an official briefed on the negotiations told Reuters.

Israel and Hamas agree to ceasefire deal to pause Gaza war and release some hostages, mediators say

Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal, mediators announced Wednesday, pausing a devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip and raising the possibility of winding down the deadliest and most destructive fighting between the bitter enemies.

The deal, coming after weeks of painstaking negotiations in the Qatari capital, promises the release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas in phases, the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israel and would allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced in Gaza to return to what remains of their homes. It also would flood badly needed humanitarian aid into a devastated territory.

Officials from Qatar and Hamas confirmed that a deal had been reached, while Israel hasn’t yet commented.

The agreement still needs to be approved by Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, but is expected to go into effect in the coming days.