Fifteen months into the Israel-Hamas War that has devastated the Gaza Strip and resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people, the two sides came to a landmark agreement to pause hostilities, exchange hostages and prisoners, and rush in humanitarian aid.
The multi-phase cease-fire—which came after months of painstaking negotiations mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S.—was announced on Jan. 15 by President Joe Biden, and came into effect on Sunday, Jan. 19, with the release of three Israeli hostages and 90 Palestinian prisoners. But early hitches and delays have raised concerns about the risk of the deal collapsing and the long-term prospects for peace in the region.
Read More: A Cease-Fire Is Just the Start
Here’s what to know so far about the cease-fire deal and its latest developments:
How the cease-fire deal was reached
Biden, flanked by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, announced on Wednesday, Jan. 15, that Hamas and its allied militant groups are expected to release 33 hostages, many seized from Israel during the attacks of Oct. 7, 2023. Those hostages are expected to include all women, children, and older people who were captured over a year ago and are still alive.
The news of a cease-fire deal comes amid reports by UNICEF that at least 74 children were killed in the Gaza Strip in just the first week of 2025.
This first phase of the deal, which will run for six weeks, will also include the withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated parts of Gaza, and the daily entry of up to 600 trucks carrying aid.
Biden acknowledged that his administration worked with Trump’s advisors to get the deal done. “Its terms will be implemented for the most part by the next administration,” Biden said. “In these past few days we have been speaking as one team.”
As news of the deal emerged Wednesday morning, President-elect Donald Trump posted about it on his social media platform Truth Social. “WE HAVE A DEAL FOR THE HOSTAGES IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THEY WILL BE RELEASED SHORTLY. THANK YOU!” Trump added in another post: “This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November … We have achieved so much without even being in the White House.”
Biden, in a statement released earlier Wednesday, credited the deal to multiple factors, including the “extreme pressure that Hamas has been under,” the “weakening of Iran” in the region and “dogged and painstaking American diplomacy.”
Read More: A Trump-Biden Fight Over Credit For a Gaza Cease-Fire Misses the Point
Some Israeli officials, however, cautioned that details of the deal were still being worked out, according to a statement released Wednesday by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, though the office later that day posted on X that Netanyahu called both Trump and Biden to thank them for “advancing” the release of hostages.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s office issued a statement Thursday morning claiming that “Hamas is reneging on the understandings and creating a last-minute crisis that is preventing an agreement,” but on Friday morning, it issued another statement signaling that mediators reached an agreement, which Israel’s government approved after deliberating for hours early into Saturday.
Later on Saturday morning, Majed Al-Ansari—spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs—shared a proposed timeline.
“As coordinated by the parties to the agreement and the mediators, the cease-fire in the Gaza Strip will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, January 19, local time in Gaza,” he said in a post on X. “We advise the inhabitants to take precaution, exercise the utmost caution, and wait for directions from official sources.”
Who the released hostages are
The deal had a near three-hour delay due to a wait for Hamas to deliver the names of the first three hostages set to be freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Hamas then released the names of the hostages it said would be freed first, sharing the news via a post on Telegram.
On Sunday evening, Israeli hostages Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher were released from Gaza and arrived in Israel. Announcing their return home, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari—spokesperson of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)—said: “Today, as part of these ongoing efforts, we welcomed home three hostages—three young women—after 471 days in Hamas captivity. … Today, we salute and embrace them and their families as they reunite after so long.”
Steinbrecher and Damari, an Israeli-British dual citizen, were taken from Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Gonen was kidnapped as she tried to escape from the Nova music festival.
President Joe Biden said of the released hostages: “We pray for them and their families, for there's going to be a long recovery ahead.”
Hours later, Israel’s prison service said 90 Palestinian prisoners were released from Ofer prison just outside Ramallah—all of them either women or children, according to media reports. Palestinian activist Khalida Jarrar, 62, was among those freed, a leading member of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Associated Press reported.
Two Americans—Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen—are among the list of hostages to be released later in the first phase of the deal, according to CNN and other media. Siegel and Dekel-Chen are two of the three presumed-alive American hostages of seven still held captive in Gaza.
What comes next
After its release of three hostages on the first day, Hamas is set to release another four on the seventh day followed by weekly releases, according to the AP. The first batch of 33 hostages are expected to include five female Israeli soldiers, each to be released in exchange for 50 Palestinian prisoners, including 30 militants who are serving life sentences.
Negotiations for the second phase of the deal, which is expected to try to attain the release of all remaining hostages and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, will begin on Day 16 of the cease-fire, according to the AP.
The third phase of the deal would include a “major reconstruction plan” for Gaza, as well as the return of any final remains of hostages killed, according to Biden’s initial outline of the deal.
Netanyahu, however, warned on Sunday that Israel views the cease-fire as “temporary,” adding: “We reserve the right to resume the war if necessary, with American support.”
—With reporting by Brian Bennett, Rebecca Schneid, Olivia-Anne Cleary, and Chad de Guzman.
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