Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Wednesday that a ceasefire agreement with Hamas is still not complete and the final details are being worked out.
Netanyahu's statement comes hours after the United States and Qatar announced the deal, which would pause the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clear the way for dozens of hostages to go home. The conflict has destabilized the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants stormed into southern Israel and killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. A third of the 100 hostages still held in Gaza are believed to be dead.Netanyahu claims Hamas backtracked on an earlier understanding about prisoner release in the ceasefire deal
He said he told Israeli negotiators to stand firm on the earlier agreement. Hamas did not immediately respond to Netanyahu’s statement. “Today, our people and their resistance imposed an honorable agreement to stop the aggression,” Palestinian Islamic Jihad said in a statement. There’s a least one other known living American captive in Gaza, an Israeli soldier named Edan Alexander, who will be released at a later date in the second phase of the agreement, the official said. It’s not clear how many of the hostages are still alive.Netanyahu says the ceasefire is still not complete, hours after US announces deal
Phase one starts Sunday, according to mediator Qatar. It should include a six-week halt to fighting and the opening of negotiations on ending the war. Thirty-three of the nearly 100 hostages should be released over the period, although it’s not clear if all are alive. They include women, older adults and wounded people.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer celebrated the hostages who are set to return home and mourned the people killed in the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, and in captivity. He promised to surge humanitarian aid to war-weary civilians in Gaza. French President Emmanuel Macron wrote that, “The agreement must be respected. The hostages, freed. The Gazans, rescued. A political solution must be found.”
Khalil al-Hayyah, the acting head of Hamas’ political bureau and chief negotiator, said the ceasefire deal represents a “new phase” which will focus on Gaza rebuilding and recovering. The Military Operations Administration is run Syria’s de facto leadership under Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which did not comment on the attack. The attack coincided with Syrian security operations to search homes for weapons, according to the war monitor.
In some areas, nonstop shooting and fireworks rang out. Images circulated on social media showing several people wounded, with at least one killed, by stray bullets. The marchers also have chanted, “God is great.” They are stopping traffic in places, and security is nearby. Volker Türk also said human rights must be at the forefront of any reconstruction of Gaza after Wednesday’s announcement of a cease-fire between Israel and the militant group Hamas in the strip.
Tom Fletcher, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said aid agencies have been mobilizing to scale up aid delivery across Gaza. “Thank God that the agreement has been reached and that we will return to our homes, to our families, and to our loved ones,” he said, however, “It is true that our homes are gone, and our loved ones, our brothers, and our families are gone.”
TEL AVIV, Israel -- The Hostage Families Forum, which represents many relatives of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, has welcomed “with overwhelming joy and relief” the agreement between Israel and Hamas. Trump declared in a social media post last month “there will be ALL HELL TO PAY” if the hostages weren’t released before the U.S. Inauguration Day.
WASHINGTON — Implementation of the agreement could begin Sunday, when the first group of hostages may be freed, according to a senior U.S. official involved in the talks. The official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. Biden’s comments came not long after President-elect Donald Trump in a social media post claimed his election victory is what brought about the deal.DOHA, Qatar -- Qatar’s prime minister on Wednesday announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, pausing the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clearing the way for dozens of Israeli hostages to go home.
Over six weeks, 33 of the nearly 100 hostages are to be reunited with their loved ones after months in captivity with no contact with the outside world, although it’s unclear if all are alive.ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s foreign minister said a year of negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza needlessly prolonged civilian suffering and “only provided more time for Israel’s operations.”
That comes after multiple officials had said Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza and the release dozens of hostages after more than 15 months of war.RAMALLAH, West Bank — The Palestinian Health Ministry says an Israeli airstrike in the occupied West Bank has killed six men. “This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November, as it signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies,” Trump wrote on social media. “I am thrilled American and Israeli hostages will be returning home to be reunited with their families and loved ones.
“We have been waiting for this happiness for a year and a half. No one can feel the feeling that we are experiencing now, an indescribable, indescribable feeling,” said Mahmoud Wadi in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah before joining a chanting crowd. Sharone lifschitz, whose father Oded is being held hostage told the AP by phone she was stunned and grateful but won’t believe it until she sees them come home.
One official said that it was expected that the ceasefire would be implemented in the coming days. All three requested anonymity to discuss the contours of the deal before the official announcement by mediators in Doha. Aman Abu Jarad, a displaced woman from Beit Hanoun, is yearning to return home and rejoin her siblings and loved ones, despite the massive destruction across the Gaza Strip.
Israel announced late Wednesday that Hamas had tried to change agreed-upon understandings for security arrangements along Gaza’s border with Egypt. It strongly rejected the proposals. The military said the seizure of weapons and its presence in the buffer zone are necessary to ensure the security of Israel and the Golan Heights.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Netanyahu Says Israel to Occupy Syrian Buffer Zone IndefinitelyIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu entered Syrian territory on Tuesday, marking the first time a sitting Israeli leader has done so. Israel seized a buffer zone in southern Syria following the fall of Bashar Assad, claiming it is necessary for security. Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz visited Mount Hermon, the highest peak in the region, located within the buffer zone.
Read more »
Israel's Netanyahu sends Mossad director to Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar in sign of progressDEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar , his office said Saturday, in a sign of progress in talks on th
Read more »
Israel's Netanyahu sends Mossad director to Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar in sign of progressDEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar , his office said Saturday, in a sign of progress in talks on th
Read more »
Israel's Netanyahu sends Mossad director to Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar in sign of progressIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar, his office said Saturday, in a sign of progress in talks on the war in Gaza.
Read more »
Israel's Netanyahu sends Mossad director to Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar in sign of progressIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar, his office said Saturday, in a sign of progress in talks on the war in Gaza.
Read more »
Netanyahu, Biden Discuss Israel-Hamas Ceasefire as Deal Seems NearIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden talked about efforts to reach a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in the Israel-Hamas war, indicating a possible deal before Donald Trump's inauguration. The talks, mediated by the US, Egypt, and Qatar, are nearing a conclusion with high-level Israeli officials now involved.
Read more »