Israel’s Security Cabinet on Friday recommended approval of a ceasefire and hostage agreement with Hamas, leaving it one step closer to implementation. The deal still needs to be approved by the entire Israeli cabinet, after which it is expected to enter into force on Sunday.
Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip continued overnight Friday, and the Hamas-run civil defense agency said 113 Palestinians had been killed since Wednesday evening’s announcement of a ceasefire and hostage agreement.
Huda Mathrabi, a Palestinian woman living in northern Gaza, told CBS News’ partner network BBC News that the prospect of a deal gave her hope, but that “with this hope comes real fear” that the deal could fall apart. ” he said.
“Fear is not only about immediate danger, but also about the psychological toll, such as constant anxiety and the ever-present feeling that our life is not really ours,” she said. .
Families of the hostages gathered in Tel Aviv on Friday to press for a deal.
“This deal is too late for my son Guy. His life cannot be saved. But we can bring him home to be buried here,” said the 26-year-old kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival on October 26. Michel Illouz, who has a son, says: He told the assembled crowd that he was believed to have died in Gaza on July 7, 2023. “Our work is not done. We will not rest until all the hostages, living and dead, are returned home. They all need to return to us, to their families.”
Israel’s security ministers met early Friday to discuss the agreement with an Israeli team sent to negotiate in Qatar. A broad group of Israeli ministers was originally scheduled to take a separate vote on the deal on Saturday, but it was moved up to Friday afternoon.
On Friday, various Israeli hospitals were preparing to receive hostages to be released under the deal.
At Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Medical Center, private wards were made more comfortable and a special diet menu was prepared. The hospital had installed a fence to protect privacy. The plan was for the hostages to arrive by helicopter.
At Sheba Hospital, plans were in place for specialized staff to support the hostages when they arrived, and new clothing and toiletries were being arranged for them.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced on Friday that implementation of the Gaza hostage release and Palestinian prisoner exchange plan within Israel could begin on Sunday, subject to approval by the security cabinet and government.
The first phase of the plan will last 42 days, with a cessation of fighting and an exchange of 33 hostages in the Gaza Strip and up to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons. There will also be a withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip and a surge in humanitarian aid.
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