Israel and Hamas agreed Wednesday to pause fighting in Gaza so that the remaining hostages there can be freed in the coming days in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, accepting elements of a plan put forward by the U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration that would represent the biggest breakthrough in months in the devastating 2-year-old war.
Hamas said it had agreed to a deal that will lead to the end of the war in Gaza, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, the entry of aid into Gaza and the exchange of prisoners for hostages.
While many questions remain, the sides appear to be closer than they have been in several months to ending a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, destroyed most of Gaza and ignited other armed conflicts across the Middle East.
What to know:
What comes next: Hamas plans to release all 20 living hostages in the coming days, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press, while the Israeli military will begin a withdrawal from the majority of Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene the Israeli government on Thursday to approve the deal. A senior Hamas official said the group has handed over a list of Palestinian prisoners who will be released as part of the ceasefire deal.Unanswered questions: It was not immediately clear whether the parties had made any progress on thornier questions about the future of the conflict, including whether Hamas will demilitarize, as Trump has demanded, and eventual governance of the war-torn territory.The war’s impact: The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people, many of them civilians, and took 251 hostage. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead, devastated Gaza and upended global politics. The war has sparked worldwide protests and brought widespread allegations of genocide that Israel denies.