US President Joe Biden has expressed relief that some hostages taken when Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7 will soon go free under a deal brokered with help from across the Middle East. “I am extraordinarily gratified that some of these brave souls… will be reunited with their families once this deal is fully implemented,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House.
The US President thanked Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt for their critical partnership in reaching this deal. “And I appreciate Prime Minister Netanyahu’s commitment in supporting an extended pause to ensure this deal can be fully carried out,” he added.
I welcome the deal to secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas during its brutal assault against Israel on October 7th.⁰⁰I’m gratified that these brave souls, who have endured an unspeakable ordeal, will be reunited with their families once this deal is fully implemented.— President Biden (@POTUS) November 22, 2023
This comes after a ‘near-all-night meeting’ where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet that accepting a deal for the release of hostages taken in the Hamas attacks of October 7 was “a difficult decision but it’s a right decision”.
Israel, Hamas Agree on 4-Day Ceasefire and Release of 50 Hostages: Key Points
“The Israeli government is committed to bringing all the abductees home. Tonight, the government approved the outline for the first stage of achieving this goal, under which at least 50 abductees – women and children – will be released over a span of four days, during which there will be a lull in the fighting,” the statement said. “The release of every ten additional abductees will result in an additional day of respite,” it added.
Pause to begin in the next 24 hours
On Wednesday, Qatar confirmed that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement on a four-day humanitarian pause, to begin in the next 24 hours, in exchange for the release of 50 hostages in Gaza. “The starting time of the pause will be announced within the next 24 hours and last for four days, subject to extension,” Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
“The agreement includes the release of 50 civilian women and children hostages currently held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of a number of Palestinian women and children detained in Israeli prisons, the number of those released will be increased in later stages of implementing the agreement,” it added.
Israel-Hamas War: Secret Negotiations That Led to The Gaza Hostages Deal
Qatar has been engaged in weeks of intense, behind-the-scenes negotiations aimed at freeing some of the 240 hostages held in Gaza in return for a temporary ceasefire and access to humanitarian aid. The number agreed for release by the militants is by far the largest since Hamas gunmen stormed over Gaza’s militarised border on October 7, seizing the hostages and killing 1,200 people.
In response, Israel has launched a relentless bombing campaign and subsequent ground invasion in Hamas-ruled Gaza, killing more than 11,000 people, according to the territory’s health ministry. Qatar said the deal had been undertaken with Egypt and the US as well as Hamas and Israel and would include “the entry of a larger number of humanitarian convoys and relief aid, including fuel designated for humanitarian needs”.
(With agency inputs)