Netanyahu’s office says cabinet won’t meet to approve ceasefire deal until Hamas backs down on ‘last minute concessions’
Israel’s security cabinet has delayed a planned meeting to approve a ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas in Gaza, with Benjamin Netanyahu’s office accusing Hamas of attempting to obtain ‘last minute concessions’ on some aspects of the deal.
Reuters quotes Netanyahu’s office saying “Hamas reneges on parts of the agreement reached with the mediators and Israel in an effort to extort last minute concessions. The Israeli cabinet will not convene until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement.”
Originally scheduled for 11am (9am GMT), the Jerusalem Post had earlier reported the security cabinet delay had been caused because “the hostage deal delegation hasn’t finished its work in Qatar and returned to Israel.”
It reported “When the delegation returns, the security cabinet will convene.”
More details soon …
Key events
A group of Israelis have been protesting in Jerusalem against the prospect of a ceasefire and hostage release deal. Police intervened, dragging at least one person away from the scene.
Haaretz reports that MK Zvi Succot, who represents the Religious Zionism party led by finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, has said there is “a high likelihood” the party will quit Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government if a deal with Hamas is approved.
It quotes him speaking on Israeli public radio, saying:
If the deal leads to halting the war without achieving its objectives, there is no point in continuing our partnership in the government.
We are in discussions with the prime minister to secure guarantees that the war will continue.
There is nothing we could accept, neither budgets nor positions, not even a shift in the West Bank where we are dismantling the Palestinian state, that outweighs this issue.
Funerals continue to take place in the Gaza Strip for people killed by Israeli strikes since the announcement was made that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire and hostage release deal, including for journalist Ahmad Vasshah at Nasser hospital in Deir al-Balah.
The Committee to Project Journalists (CPJ) has recorded at least 165 journalists and media workers killed in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel, and Lebanon since 7 October 2023. It states this makes it “the deadliest period for journalists since CPJ began gathering data in 1992.”
Other funerals have been taking place at the Al-Ahli Baptist hospital. At least 25 people have been reported killed by Israeli strikes since dawn. It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures being issued during the conflict.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that 25 people have been killed by Israeli strikes inside Gaza since dawn.
Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir al-Balah for Al Jazeera described the situation on the ground as “a mix of cautious relief, hope and lingering grief.”
Palestinians understand that the deal will take effect Sunday. It means we still have 72 hours expected to be filled with air strikes and escalation.
Since the early hours of this morning, we saw Israeli drones and fighter jets breaking the sound barrier and producing sonic booms that terrified everyone on the ground.
Civilians are still absolutely afraid regarding the expansion of the scale of attacks in the Gaza Strip.
Al Jazeera has been banned from operating inside Israel by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
Here is a round-up of some more reaction from world leaders:
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, who has been one of the most outspoken European critics of Israel’s war tactics, welcomed the news, saying: “It must bring an end to the conflict, allow the terrible humanitarian situation in Gaza to be dealt with, and lead to the release of all the hostages.”
Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati said the deal “ends a bloody chapter in the history of the Palestinian people, who have endured immense suffering due to Israeli aggression.” He also expressed hope for a sustainable ceasefire.
The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and his foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said all parties must respect the terms of the deal and that it “must mark the beginning of a new chapter for the Israeli and Palestinian people”.
The UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, said he was “hugely relieved by the news”, adding that it as “imperative that it now holds” and urging all parties and countries with influence to “ensure the success of next stages”.
Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said the deal “marks a significant step toward alleviating the humanitarian crisis and stabilising the situation”. Japan will support improving the humanitarian situation, fostering reconstruction, and supporting governance in Gaza, Hayashi said.
Within the last 30 minutes Israel’s military has stated that it is investigating a fallen projectile after sirens sounded in Nir Am, a kibbutz located near Sderot and very close to Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip.
Israel security cabinet to meet to approve ceasefire deal after agreement with Hamas announced
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Israel’s security cabinet will meet at 11am local time (9am GMT) on Thursday to approve a ceasefire deal, local media reported. The Israeli government will vote on the deal on Thursday, with a majority of ministers expected to approve the deal, a government official told Reuters.
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Israel continued its strikes on Gaza hours before the vote, residents and authorities in the Palestinian territory have said, with dozens of people killed since the mooted ceasefire was announced on Wednesday.
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Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with both US President Joe Biden and the incoming Donald Trump on Wednesday, his office said, thanking them for their help securing the agreement but also cautioning that “final details” were still being hammered out. Netanyahu also said early on Thursday that Hamas has backtracked on an earlier understanding of the ceasefire agreement, possibly indicating that obstacles remain to implementing the deal.
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Both Biden and Trump were quick to claim credit for the accord. Biden opened his final address to the nation by referencing the deal. “This plan was developed and negotiated by my team and will be largely implemented by the incoming administration,” he said. Trump said the “epic” agreement could have only happened as a result of his “historic” election victory.
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The Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal, which is set to be begin on Sunday and will last 42 days, will see the exchange of hostages detained by Hamas and Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons.
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Other aspects of the deal include the return of Palestinians, who have been forcibly displaced by Israeli forces, to their homes across the Gaza Strip. The deal will also see the facilitation of travel of people wounded by Israeli attacks and sick people in order to receive treatment, as well as the positioning of Israeli forces across the Gaza border.
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Biden confirmed that Americans will be part of the hostage release. “This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much needed-humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity,” Biden said.
Iran Guards hail Gaza ceasefire as ‘victory’ for Palestinians
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Thursday hailed a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Israel and the Hamas militant group as a “victory” for Palestinians and a “defeat” for Israel, AFP reports.
“The end of the war and the imposition of a ceasefire … is a clear victory and a great victory for Palestine and a bigger defeat for the monstrous Zionist regime,” the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement.
Rami Khouri, a distinguished fellow at the American University of Beirut, said that it was almost comical to see Biden and Trump try to outdo each other and claim credit for the ceasefire deal.
“Even in their announcements today they don’t really talk about the Palestinians as real people,” Khouri told Al Jazeera.
“It’s about an assertion of American might and the fact the United States feels it can dictate what will happen in the region,” he said.
Khouri also noted that Israel’s military had killed dozens on Wednesday despite the ceasefire announcement and they will “keep killing people until Sunday”.
“They did the same thing in Lebanon before every ceasefire,” he said.
Analysis: Biden or Trump – who should claim credit for the Gaza ceasefire deal?
Andrew Roth
The question yelled at Joe Biden by a reporter was unapologetically blunt: “Who do you think deserves credit for this Mr. President: you or [Donald] Trump?”
Biden had just finished announcing what he presented as his signature foreign policy achievement – a ceasefire-for-hostages deal between Israel and Hamas to halt the bloody war in Gaza that has left 46,000 Palestinians and 1,700 Israelis dead. He wasn’t in the mood for that debate.
“Is that a joke?” the president asked and then walked away flanked by vice-president Kamala Harris and secretary of state Antony Blinken.
Success has many fathers. When the ceasefire in Gaza was finally announced on Thursday, they all stood up to take the credit.
Biden in a press conference said that the ceasefire was “developed and negotiated by my team and will be largely implemented by the incoming administration.” As he praised his diplomats, he grew wistful: “The Bible says blessed are the peacemakers. Many peacemakers helped make this deal happen.”
But there was little public soul-searching about why the plan he had proposed in May – the “exact” same plan as Biden reminded reporters – was finally accepted only days before Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Leaders around the world have welcomed the news of an accord and have urged both sides to seize the moment to bring an end to the conflict and the accompanying humanitarian crisis.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said member states stood ready to support the implementation of the deal and “scale up the delivery of sustained humanitarian relief to the countless Palestinians who continue to suffer”. It was “imperative” that the ceasefire removed “the significant security and political obstacles to delivering aid across Gaza”, he added.
The US president, Joe Biden, said the Palestinian people had “gone through hell”, adding: “Too many innocent people have died. Too many communities have been destroyed. Under this deal, the people of Gaza can finally recover and rebuild.”
The US president-elect, Donald Trump, said in a post on his Truth Social website: “This epic ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our historic victory in November … I am thrilled American and Israeli hostages will be returning home to be reunited with their families and loved ones.”
The UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, described the deal as “the long-overdue news that the Israeli and Palestinian people have desperately been waiting for”.
Once humanitarian aid had reached those in need in Gaza, Starmer added, “our attention must turn to how we secure a permanently better future for the Israeli and Palestinian people – grounded in a two-state solution that will guarantee security and stability for Israel, alongside a sovereign and viable Palestine state”.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said the agreement would reunite hostages with their loved ones and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.
“This brings hope to an entire region, where people have endured immense suffering for far too long,” she said. “Both parties must fully implement this agreement, as a stepping stone toward lasting stability in the region and a diplomatic resolution of the conflict.”
Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, expressed hope that the deal would “[open] the door to a permanent end to the war and to the improvement of the poor humanitarian situation in Gaza”. He said the agreement needed to be “implemented to the letter” and all the hostages released.
Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the president of Egypt, which has played a pivotal role in the negotiations, hailed the strenuous efforts made by his country, saying it would “always remain faithful to its covenant, a supporter of just peace, a loyal partner in achieving it, and a defender of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people”.
Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has been a vocal critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza, said: “We respectfully salute the heroic people and brave sons of Gaza who courageously defended their land and freedom against Israel’s unlawful and inhumane attacks.”
Reports of further deadly attacks on Gaza continue to filter through. The Israeli military has bombed an apartment building near the Shaabiya intersection in the Daraj neighbourhood in the centre of Gaza City, killing at least four people, the Shehab news agency and the Palestinian Information Center report, according to Al Jazeera.
The IDF has yet to comment.
