Release of 50 hostages 'not before Friday' as Israel and Hamas reach four-day ceasefire deal
After more than six weeks of relentless conflict between Israel and Hamas, a pause in the fighting is proving hard to secure.
A planned hostage-for-prisoner swap with Hamas has been delayed until at least Friday, after mediators said a four-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas would begin on Thursday morning.
As part of the deal, Hamas will return 50 hostages to Israel, which in return will facilitate the release of dozens of Palestinian prisoners.
The Gaza-run Health Ministry says more than 11,000 Palestinians have died since the start of the war, although the true number is expected to be higher after the ministry lost the ability to keep an accurate death toll.
At least 1,200 people were killed in Israel following Hamas' October 7 attack in the south of the country.
Israel and Hamas have reached a deal for a four-day pause in fighting and the release of hostages held in Gaza – but they will not be freed before Friday, according to the Israel National Security Council.
In a statement released on Wednesday night, Benjamin Netanyahu’s national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said talks on the deal were continuing and that the release “will begin according to the original agreement between the parties, and not before Friday.”
The first ceasefire in seven weeks of war in Gaza was also thought to have been delayed.
Hamas has held an estimated 240 people hostage in Gaza, following its attack in southern Israel on October 7.
The deal had marked the biggest diplomatic breakthrough since fighting began in response to proscribed terror group Hamas' October 7 attack.
Qatar, which has played a key role in mediating, earlier announced the deal, which was to come into effect on Thursday morning.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late on Wednesday he told US president Joe Biden that he will press ahead with the war after a ceasefire expires.
Netanyahu said he delivered the message to Mr Biden in a phone call on Wednesday.
“I want to be clear. The war is continuing. The war is continuing. We will continue it until we achieve all our goals,” Netanyahu said.
ITV News Correspondent Robert Moore explains how the diplomatic breakthrough came about
How will the deal work?
Fifty hostages are to be released in stages, in exchange for what Hamas said would be 150 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
The first exchange was expected to take place later this week but this may change following the announcement of a delay.
Both sides will release women and children first, while the supply of humanitarian aid flowing into the besieged territory will be ramped up, according to officials.
Israel has said the pause in fighting would be extended an extra day for every additional 10 hostages released by Hamas.
The Israeli Justice Ministry has published a list of 300 prisoners eligible for release as part of the deal - mainly teenagers who have been detained for minor offences. The list was published as, under Israeli law, the public has 24 hours to object to any release.
In a statement on Wednesday, Hamas said Israeli aircraft will stop flying over southern Gaza for the duration of the four-day ceasefire and for six hours daily in the north.
Hundreds of trucks carrying humanitarian aid - including fuel - will also be allowed to enter the Gaza Strip, Hamas added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed his Cabinet had approved the deal following a six-hour meeting, but made no mention of the release of Palestinian prisoners or increased humanitarian aid.
Mr Netanyahu also said the war against Hamas would resume after the truce expires, saying: "We are at war, and we will continue the war."
On Wednesday he says he instructed his country's Mossad spy agency to track down the leadership of the Hamas militant group living in other countries outside Gaza.
Most of Hamas’ top leadership lives in exile, primarily in the Gulf state of Qatar and the Lebanese capital of Beirut.
The Mossad has been accused in a series of assassinations overseas of Palestinian militants and Iranian nuclear scientists over the years.
Following the negotiations US President Joe Biden, welcomed the deal, saying Mr Netanyahu has committed to supporting an "extended pause" to make sure that the hostages are released and humanitarian aid can be sent to Gaza.
Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres said he welcomes the agreement between Israel and Hamas but that much more needs to be done to support Gaza.
Meanwhile, UK foreign secretary Lord Cameron said the truce was a "crucial step", adding it provides an "important opportunity to ensure much greater volumes of food, fuel and other life-saving aid can reach Gaza on a sustained basis".
And Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer also welcomed the news, writing on X, formerly known as Twitter: "We must now ensure this pause is used to tackle the urgent and unacceptable humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza."
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas' military and governing capabilities before there is any permanent end to the war, which has displaced 1.7 million Gazans from their homes.
More than 11,000 Palestinians have died - two thirds of which are estimated to be women and children - since the fighting broke out, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
The UN aid agency for Palestinian refugees said almost 1,037,000 internally displaced Palestinians were currently seeking shelter in 156 UNRWA facilities across the Gaza Strip.
The Ministry said that as of November 11 it had stopped keeping an accurate death toll due to the collapse of large parts of the health system.
At least 1,200 people were killed in Israel when Hamas launched its surprise attack at the start of October.
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