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SvennoJ on 17 January 2025
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Israel’s Netanyahu confirms ceasefire deal reached: Report

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a Gaza ceasefire and captives deal has been reached, The Associated Press news agency reports.

The announcement on Friday came a day after Netanyahu’s office said there were last-minute snags in talks to free captives in return for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Netanyahu said he will convene his security cabinet later on Friday and then the government to approve the ceasefire agreement.

 
Netanyahu confirms ceasefire deal reached: Here’s what comes next

As we have been reporting, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has officially confirmed that a Gaza ceasefire and captives deal has been reached with Hamas.

As a first step, Netanyahu will convene his security cabinet for a vote on the deal later today. This was originally slated for Thursday, but Netanyahu delayed it, accusing Hamas of stalling on a few minor issues.

Israeli analysts suggest, however, that the real issue is internal rifts among far-right members of his government who oppose the deal.

The Times of Israel also reports that there are further steps that need to be taken before the ceasefire deal – which is expected to start on Sunday – will officially come into force:

  • After today’s security cabinet meeting and vote, Netanyahu will convene a full cabinet meeting on Saturday night.
  • It is unclear how this meeting will differ from Friday’s security cabinet meeting, but reports say it is being held to accommodate cabinet members observing the Sabbath – a day of rest in Judaism running from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday.
  • If the ceasefire is formally approved on Saturday night, opponents of the deal will then be provided the mandated 24 hours to petition Israel’s High Court of Justice with objections.
  • The 24-hour grace period for petition filing won’t conclude until late on Sunday evening, and so it would appear that the ceasefire will not come into force until Monday.



International community must compel Israel to abide by Gaza ceasefire: Al-Haq

Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq has called on the international community to ensure that Israel complies with the ceasefire agreement to end fighting in Gaza that was announced on Thursday.

In a lengthy statement, Al-Haq said that Israel has “given no indication that it will ever abide by the fundamentals of international law nor respect the human rights of Palestinians”. Therefore, it is imperative that the international community take action.

The rights organisation said the international community must compel respect for the ceasefire and international law by imposing an arms embargo and economic sanctions on Israel.

Forensic experts, international media, international humanitarian organisations and foreign diplomatic missions must also be given access to Gaza, Al-Haq said.

The international community must “use all means at their disposal to force Israel to comply with international law by dismantling its settler colonial apartheid regime, guaranteeing the right of return of refugees, and ceasing the closure of the Gaza Strip”, it said.