Celebration of a provisional ceasefire deal, Khan Younis, southern Gaza, January 15, 2025 (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)
What We Know About The (Potential) Gaza Ceasefire Deal
While welcoming the agreement, due to take effect on Sunday, I note that we still await confirmation from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Cabinet — with some hard-right Ministers threatening to leave the Government over “surrender” to Gaza’s Hamas.
And I explain that the agreement only covers first, six-week phase in which 33 Israeli hostages will be freed by Hamas in return for the release of more than 1,200 Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons.
Agreement on the second phase, let alone the third and final stage, may run into difficulties into Israeli occupation of Gaza and Hamas’ insistence that it remain in power.