The Israeli cabinet has publicly ratified a detailed truce agreement that includes the liberation of all outstanding captives held by the militant group in the Gaza Strip, marking a major step toward terminating the devastating two-year war.
US Military Participation in Supervising the Ceasefire
High-ranking representatives in the US capital have announced that a US military unit of around 200 members will be dispatched to the territory to "oversee" the cessation of hostilities after both Israeli authorities and Hamas acceded to the first phase of the Trump government's peace proposal.
The role will be to monitor, witness, guarantee there are no violations.
Immediate Implementation Schedule
Based on an Israel's official, the halt in fighting should start without delay following cabinet endorsement. The Israel's military was provided 24 hours to retreat its units to an agreed-upon position. Following that, the detainees held in the Gaza Strip would be released within 72 hours, a cabinet spokesperson announced.
Major Developments
- The militant group's exiled Gaza Strip chief Khalil Al-Hayya claimed he had received assurances from the United States and other negotiating parties that the war was over.
- The head of the American military's CENTCOM, Admiral Brad Cooper, would initially have 200 people on the ground, a top American official stated.
- From Egypt, from Qatar, from Turkey and likely from the UAE military representatives would be embedded in the team, the American representative stated. A another official stated that "no US troops are planned to go into the Gaza Strip".
- Israeli airstrikes continued in the period before the Israel's cabinet's decision. Explosions were observed on the previous day in northern Gaza, and a airstrike on a building in the Gaza capital claimed the lives of at least two people and resulted in more than 40 stranded under wreckage, according to Gazan civil defence.
- No fewer than 11 deceased Palestinians and another 49 who were hurt were brought at health centers over the past 24 hours, Gaza's Hamas-administered medical department stated.
- Israeli forces was hitting locations that posed a risk to its troops as they reposition, said an Israel's military official who spoke on the basis of anonymity. Hamas blasted Israeli authorities over the strike, claiming that Netanyahu was trying to "shuffle the circumstances and confuse" attempts by negotiating parties to terminate the war.
- Twenty Israeli captives are still believed to be alive in the Gaza Strip, while twenty-six are presumed dead, and the fate of 2 is undetermined.
- The Trump administration wider 20-point ceasefire plan includes many unresolved matters, such as if and how Hamas will disarm. But both parties appeared nearer than they have been in many months to concluding the conflict, which was triggered by Hamas's 7 October 2023 offensive on Israeli territory, in which around 1,200 people were murdered and 251 captured, leading to an Israeli response that has left more than 67,000 Gazan residents killed and nearly 170,000 injured, as per the Gaza Strip's health authority.
- Israeli Defense Forces announced Mordechai Nachmani, a 26-year-old reservist soldier, was killed in a militant sniper incident in Gaza City on the previous day afternoon. This happened after Israeli and militant delegates signed a deal in Cairo to secure the return of the captives, however the truce aspect of the deal had not yet taken place.
- Israel's media source Haaretz has made public the details of Gazan detainees it believes could be liberated as part of the new deal. 250 Gazan detainees who are completing life sentences are anticipated to be liberated as part of the agreement, out of about 290 currently held in Israel's detention. 22 children will also be liberated.
Global Response
There have been no plans for British or European troops to be in Gaza after the halt in fighting agreement, the United Kingdom's foreign secretary the British official said. "This is not our plan, there's no arrangements to do that," she stated on the current day morning.
The official noted: "Nevertheless there is an immediate plan for the US to head what is effectively like a supervision system to make sure that this occurs on the site, to oversee the procedure with hostage liberation, and also guaranteeing that this primary phase is executed, delivering the aid in location, but they have also made very explicit that they anticipate the troops on the location to be supplied by adjacent countries, and that is something that we do foresee to occur."
The official stated she anticipates the truce will be implemented "immediately". As per the top diplomat, there are international talks on an "international safety contingent" and the United Kingdom was carrying on to participate in other manners, including looking at getting non-governmental funding into Gaza.
Public Response
Israelis and Palestinians alike expressed joy after the halt in fighting deal was announced, while there was joy but also anxiety in the Gaza Strip amid fears the new agreement could break down.
