Israel-Hamas ceasefire | Highlights: Israel publishes list of 700 Palestinians to be released under truce deal

Israel-Hamas ceasefire | Key points

• In a significant move towards ending he 15-month-long war in Gaza, Israel's government on Saturday approved the ceasefire agreement with Hamas, which will go into effect on Sunday, January 19 and includes a series of hostage exchanges.
• Netanyahu's office earlier said there were last minute “snags” in finalising a ceasefire that would pause 15 months of war. The Israeli PM had said he would convene his security Cabinet later Friday, and then the government to approve the long-awaited hostage deal.
• Netanyahu's statement comes a after US President Joe Biden and Qatar's PM announced the deal, which would pause the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clear the way for the release of dozens of hostages.
• Earlier, Qatar's Prime Minister confirmed that the ceasefire in Gaza will begin on Sunday and 33 Israeli hostages will be released in the first phase of the truce, reported AFP.
• The US, Egypt and Qatar have spent the past year trying to mediate an end to the war sparked by Hamas' attack on Israel in October 2023. During months of on-off talks, the two sides have previously said they were close to a ceasefire only to hit last-minute obstacles.
• The war on Gaza broke out after Hamas orchestrated the deadliest-ever attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally. Hamas also took 251 people from Israel hostage during the attack, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
• In response, Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The fighting has left much of Gaza in ruins and displaced most of the enclave's pre-war population of 2.3 million.