Ceasefire agreement in Gaza is presented to the Israeli government for approval as the world welcome the agreement to end 466 day of bloody war and destruction

The Israeli government will meet on Thursday to give the green light to the ceasefire agreement with Hamas in Gaza, which Doha and Washington announced was reached after more than 15 months of war that left tens of thousands of martyrs, widespread destruction and a humanitarian disaster in the Strip.

After more than a year of stumbling, and with the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump approaching on Monday as successor to Joe Biden, the indirect negotiations taking place in Doha intensified, leading on Wednesday evening to a three-stage agreement stipulating a truce starting on Sunday and the release of 33 prisoners held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of 1,000 Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons, and the entry of more humanitarian aid.

The move was welcomed by a number of capitals and international organizations, and thousands of Palestinians celebrated across the besieged and devastated Gaza Strip as a result of the war that broke out on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel.

Hamas was quick to confirm that the agreement was an achievement for the resistance and the fruit of its legendary steadfastness.

In Iran, the Revolutionary Guards welcomed the agreement on Thursday, calling it “a clear victory, a great victory for Palestine, and a greater defeat for the brutal Zionist regime”.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf also welcomed the agreement, which “made the Zionist regime fail in achieving its strategic goal”.

But the Israeli government hasn’t yet ratified the agreement, and Israeli raids on the Strip continued on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, killing more than 40 people.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement issued overnight by his office that work was still underway to iron out the last details of the agreement, but thanked Donald Trump and Joe Biden, who have worked closely on the issue, for their help in reaching an agreement on the hostages.

The Israeli cabinet is holding a meeting on Thursday to discuss the agreement and is expected to approve it despite the disagreements, given Netanyahu’s majority.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog considered the truce agreement to be the right choice to return the hostages, while the far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich denounced the dangerous deal for Israel’s security, explaining that his party’s ministers would vote against it.

On Thursday, the Egyptian capital, Cairo, will host a meeting focusing on implementing the terms of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza and the exchange of prisoners between Hamas and Israel.

A senior US official said, in response to a question about what could happen if a breach occurs during the first phase of the agreement, “We’re not leaving anything to chance… There is a meeting in Cairo today (Thursday) that focuses on implementing the agreement in all its aspects, including the humanitarian provisions, the ceasefire provisions, the release of detainees and the exchange of prisoners”.

Reuters quoted an informed source as saying that the important details of increasing aid to Gaza still need to be worked out, and that they are scheduled to be discussed in talks in Cairo on Thursday that will include the United Nations, relief organizations, governments, and others.