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Israel and Hamas, after engaging in separate negotiations with Qatar’s prime minister, have agreed to a deal involving a ceasefire and the liberation of hostages held in Gaza, a source with knowledge of the talks informed shared on Wednesday.
In the last few days, the call for an end to the ongoing clashes grew louder, as Qatar, Egypt, and the United States doubled down on their mediation efforts. The trio worked tirelessly to secure an accord that would bring stability and cease the violence, reflecting a heightened sense of urgency in the region.
On Wednesday, it emerged that Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani had convened a meeting with Hamas negotiators in his office. According to a source familiar with the talks, the gathering was intended as a last-ditch attempt to secure a breakthrough and finalize the deal.
According to a source familiar with the proceedings, a ceasefire in Gaza, alongside a hostage release agreement, was successfully brokered. The breakthrough came after Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani held separate discussions with both Hamas negotiators and their Israeli counterparts in his office, AFP reported.
This breakthrough comes after months of failed efforts to resolve the ongoing conflict, which has claimed countless lives and marked one of the bloodiest chapters in Gaza’s history. Just days before Donald Trump’s inauguration as president, the US president-elect offered an early endorsement of the agreement, giving it his seal of approval before the White House made the announcement public.
“We have a deal for the hostages in the Middle East. They will be released shortly. Thank you!” Trump said on his Truth Social network.
Trump had previously cautioned Hamas that failing to release the remaining hostages before his inauguration would result in severe consequences, a threat he made known in the lead-up to his presidency. Representatives from both the incoming Trump administration and the outgoing Biden administration participated in the critical negotiations, reflecting the significance of the moment.
Read also: Biden Announces Imminent Truce Deal As Gaza War Rages On
Hamas sparked the war in Gaza by staging the deadliest-ever attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Palestinian militants also took 251 people hostage during the attack, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry that the UN considers reliable.
Among the sticking points in successive rounds of talks had been disagreements over the permanence of any ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the scale of humanitarian aid for the Palestinian territory.
The UN’s Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, facing an Israeli ban on its activities set to take effect later this month, said it will continue providing much-needed aid.