
Israel – Hamas War: Ceasefire Comes into Effect in Gaza, Exchange of Hostages Begin
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 19: The 15-month long Gaza war is finally expected to come to an end as after hours of delay, the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas began to take effect on Sunday afternoon with the hostage release planned later in the day.
Gaza ceasefire came into effect after Hamas released the names of the first three Israeli hostages to be freed and in return expect Israel to release 30 prisoners pausing a 15-month-old war that has brought devastation and seismic political change to the Middle East.
Thousands of Palestinians cheered in the streets across Gaza as the ceasefire began to take effect on Sunday. Some people celebrated while others visited the graves of relatives. Many returned to see what remained of their homes. Hundreds of people picked their way through a devastated landscape of rubble and twisted metal in northern Gaza, where some of the most intense Israeli airstrikes and battles with the militants took place.
Israel said a truce with Hamas began in Gaza at 11:15 am local time (09:15 GMT and 2:45 pm IST), nearly three hours after initially scheduled, following a last-minute delay on the orders of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The ceasefire was initially delayed and began after Hamas handed Israel list of hostages to be released.
The three-stage ceasefire has now come into effect as Hamas is expected to release three women Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher from captivity in Gaza. In return, Hamas is expecting a list of 90 Palestinian prisoners who would be released as part of the prisoner-hostage exchange on the first day of the ceasefire.
During the delay, Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israel’s military continued striking the Palestinian territory killing several people. The Israeli military also confirmed it was continuing “to strike within the Gaza area” following Netanyahu’s directive. Israeli airstrikes and artillery attacks killed 13 Palestinians between 8:30 am local time–when the ceasefire was meant to begin, and 11:15 am– when it actually took effect, Palestinian medics said.
In a statement issued less than an hour before the truce had been set to start, Netanyahu’s office said he had “instructed the IDF (military) that the ceasefire… will not begin until Israel has received the list” of hostages to be freed. Hamas, meanwhile, attributed the delay in sharing the list to “technical reasons”, as well as the “complexities of the field situation and the continued bombing”, ultimately publishing the names of three Israeli women to be released on Sunday nearly three hours after the deadline.
A Palestinian official said the delay occurred because mediators had asked for 48 hours of “calm” before the ceasefire’s implementation, but continued Israeli strikes right up until the deadline had made it difficult to send the list. Two hours after the deadline, Israel confirmed it had received the list and was “checking the details”, before confirming shortly afterwards that the truce would begin at 11:15 am local time.
The ceasefire deal could help usher in an end to the Gaza war, which began after Hamas, which controls the tiny coastal territory, attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people. Israel’s response has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed nearly 47,000 Palestinians. The war also set off a confrontation throughout the Middle East between Israel and its arch-foe Iran, which backs Hamas and other anti-Israeli and anti-American paramilitary forces like Hezbollah.
The truce came after a three-phase deal struck by mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt after months of negotiations, and takes effect on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president.
Its first stage will last six weeks, during which 33 of the remaining 98 hostages – women, children, men over 50, the ill and wounded – will be released in return for almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. They include 737 male, female and teenage prisoners, some of whom are members of militant groups convicted of attacks that killed dozens of Israelis, as well as hundreds of Palestinians from Gaza in detention since the start of the war.
Under the terms of the deal, Hamas will inform the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) where the meeting point will be inside Gaza and the ICRC is expected to begin driving to that location to collect the hostages, an official said.
Israel is preparing to receive the hostages near the Gaza border as the Red Cross began proceedings later on Sunday. The hostages will be taken to one of the facilities located near the border for a medical check-up, after which they will be reunited with their families in a hospital.
Israeli sources said the Red Cross has not yet received Israeli hostages Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher from Hamas, contradicting earlier reports. Videos showed large crowds gathering next to Red Cross vehicles at the Saraya Square in central Gaza City, where the hostage exchange is expected to take place. Dozens of Hamas gunmen were also present there.
As Israel prepares to welcome three hostages held captive for 15 months in Gaza, the mothers of these hostages have been asked by the military to come to a meeting point at a base next to the Gaza border. They will accompany their daughters as they are taken to the hospital.
US President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said if Hamas reneges on the Gaza ceasefire deal, the US would support Israel “in doing what it has to do.” He assured that Hamas will never govern the Gaza Strip, calling it “completely unacceptable.”
One of the most talked about points of the ceasefire deal is who will run Gaza. The issue has been left out of the truce proposal because of the likelihood it would hold up a limited deal. However, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It has also rejected administration of Gaza by the Palestinian Authority, the Western-backed body run by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
However, there have been discussions between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the United States over a provisional administration that would run Gaza until a reformed Palestinian Authority is able to take charge, media reports said.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the war would not end in Gaza until all hostages have been returned. “We will not stop the war until everyone returns home,” he says during a visit to an army facility on the Gaza border.
Pope Francis on Sunday thanked mediators and urged a boost in humanitarian aid as well as the return of hostages, while calling for the ceasefire in Gaza to be “immediately respected.” “I express gratitude to all the mediators,” the Argentine pontiff said shortly after the start of a truce between Israel and Hamas began.