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- Egypt says ceasefire will begin today
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Egypt says ceasefire will begin today
A ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel has been confirmed by both parties, along with the United States and Qatar, which helped broker the deal that would bring a temporary halt to the devastating war that is now in its seventh week.
The Israeli government said that, under an outline of the deal, Hamas is to free at least 50 of the roughly 240 hostages taken in its October 7 attack on Israel over a four-day period, and Israel is to release some Palestinian prisoners in exchange.
Protesters gather outside the Scottish parliament building in Edinburgh this week.Credit: Getty
Egyptian state media say the truce will begin on Thursday morning (local time), which would mean some time this afternoon or evening in Australia. Egypt helped mediate the ceasefire agreement, which would bring the first respite to war-weary Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 11,000 people have been killed, according to health authorities.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said before the cabinet voted to back the agreement yesterday that the war would continue after any ceasefire. Some 1200 people have been killed in Israel, mostly during the initial incursion by Hamas.
AP
Israel posts list of Palestinians who could be released
Israelâs Justice Ministry has published a list of 300 Palestinian detainees and prisoners who could potentially be released in a hostage deal.
Most of those on the list are teenagers arrested over the past year for relatively minor offences, including throwing rocks or alleged incitement. None was convicted of murder, though some served sentences for attempted murder.
The youngest detainee on the list is 14, and it also includes around 40 women. The detainees are to be released to their homes in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.
Israelis had 24 hours to object to the release of any individuals on the list.
According to the truce-for-hostages deal announced this week, 50 hostages will be released over four days, probably starting on Thursday, during which fighting will pause.
After that, every additional 10 hostages released will result in one additional day in the pause and the release of additional Palestinian prisoners.
Israel is expected to release 150 Palestinian prisoners in the first four days, though the Ministry of Justice published the list of 300 in case the deal is extended. Under Israeli law, the public has 24 hours to object to any release.
AP
Thousands of aid trucks queue for Gaza
International aid groups that have lined up thousands of aid trucks for Gaza say theyâre ready to move quickly to send in food, water and other supplies if a pause in fighting between Hamas and Israel takes hold as hoped on Thursday.
Details remain unclear about both the mechanics of getting more aid for beleaguered Palestinians in Gaza and the possible release of hostages kidnapped from Israel whose families have desperately sought their release.
Trucks carrying humanitarian aid line up at the Rafah border crossing at the weekend.Credit: AP
The aid groups say a key ambition will be to get help to northern Gaza, which has been largely inaccessible to humanitarian shipments and where nearly all hospitals have stopped working amid a blistering military campaign by Israeli forces.
âThe entire humanitarian sector is ready to scale up once everything is set,â said Tommaso Della Longa, a spokesman for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, referring to the fine print of the announced deal.
Della Longa lamented âbottlenecksâ that have confounded the deliveries of some humanitarian aid â though not nearly enough â into Gaza. He said IFRC hopes that a deal would include provisions to allow for a âfaster trackâ of aid shipments.
The only route for international humanitarian aid into Gaza since Oct. 7 has been through the Rafah Crossing into Egypt, and planeloads of supplies have been flown into the nearby Egyptian city of El-Arish â and trucks have queued up near Gaza.
Intense Israeli inspections of trucks and cargo have slowed entry into Gaza.
AP
Palestinian poet released
The Israeli army says it has released an award-winning Palestinian poet it detained in Gaza.
Mosab Abu Toha has been contributing pieces to western media since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, painting a dire picture of its toll on civilians through his personal experience.
His family announced on Monday that Abu Toha had been arrested while evacuating to southern Gaza from his home in the hard-hit Jabaliya refugee camp.
Abu Toha last posted to X on Nov. 15, writing: âAlive. Thanks for your prayers.â
Diana Buttu, a former Palestinian peace negotiator and friend of the family, said Abu Toha was stopped at an Israeli checkpoint and held for two days with dozens of other Palestinians at an Israeli detention centre. She says he was accused of having Hamas connections and beaten up in custody.
âHe was taken out of Gaza and he was interrogated,â she said.
She said he was released on Tuesday, apparently after the case attracted international attention.
The literary and free expression organisation PEN said it was concerned about the arrest and demanded to know Abu Tohaâs whereabouts and the reason for his arrest. The New Yorker magazine, to which Abu Toha has contributed multiple articles, called for his safe return.
Buttu said Abu Toha was safe in central Gaza after receiving medical treatment. The poet, whose son is an American citizen, is trying to leave the besieged territory.
Mass grave in Khan Younis
More than 100 bodies have been buried in a mass grave in Khan Younis, in south Gaza, the corpses wrapped in blue plastic sheets fastened with cable ties.
Medical workers placed dozens of bodies brought from various areas in northern Gaza, including Al Shifa Hospital, into a huge trench that was dug using a bulldozer.
Workers wearing surgical masks and gloves carried the bodies to the grave and performed funeral prayers.
AP
Egypt says ceasefire will begin today
A ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel has been confirmed by both parties, along with the United States and Qatar, which helped broker the deal that would bring a temporary halt to the devastating war that is now in its seventh week.
The Israeli government said that, under an outline of the deal, Hamas is to free at least 50 of the roughly 240 hostages taken in its October 7 attack on Israel over a four-day period, and Israel is to release some Palestinian prisoners in exchange.
Protesters gather outside the Scottish parliament building in Edinburgh this week.Credit: Getty
Egyptian state media say the truce will begin on Thursday morning (local time), which would mean some time this afternoon or evening in Australia. Egypt helped mediate the ceasefire agreement, which would bring the first respite to war-weary Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 11,000 people have been killed, according to health authorities.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said before the cabinet voted to back the agreement yesterday that the war would continue after any ceasefire. Some 1200 people have been killed in Israel, mostly during the initial incursion by Hamas.
AP
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