Women, children among dead; Netanyahu says Hamas backtracking on agreements
Palestinians gather to receive food aid being distributed in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, yesterday. Photo: AFP
Israel delays cabinet vote on ceasefire deal
Hamas is committed to ceasefire deal: official
Trucks carrying aid lining up in Egyptian border town
Israel airstrikes killed 77 people in Gaza yesterday, residents and authorities in the enclave said, hours after a ceasefire and hostage release deal was announced to bring an end to 15 months of offensive.
The complex ceasefire accord emerged on Wednesday after mediation by Qatar, Egypt and the US to stop the offensive that has devastated the coastal territory and inflamed the Middle East.
The deal, scheduled to be implemented from Sunday, outlines a six-week initial ceasefire with the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, where tens of thousands have been killed. Hostages taken by Hamas, which controls the enclave, would be freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel.
Israel's acceptance of the deal will not be official until it is approved by the country's security cabinet and government, and a vote was slated for yesterday, an Israeli official said.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of making last-minute demands and going back on agreements.
"The Israeli cabinet will not convene until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement," a statement from Netanyahu's office said. It was unclear what impact the latest delay will have on the deal.
Hamas is committed to the ceasefire agreement announced by mediators on Wednesday, senior group official Izzat el-Reshiq said yesterday.
Hardliners in Netanyahu's government were still hoping to stop the deal, though a majority of ministers were still expected to back it.
While people celebrated the pact in Gaza and Israel, Israel's military conducted more attacks after the announcement, the civil emergency service and residents said.
Yesterday, Hamas fighters fired a rocket into Israel, the Israeli military said, causing no casualties.
Israeli airstrikes throughout the night and early yesterday killed at least 77 Palestinians, including women and children, raising the death toll to 46,788 people, according to Gaza health officials.
The agreement calls for a surge in humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross said they were preparing to scale up their aid operations.
Rows of aid trucks were lined up in the Egyptian border town of El-Arish waiting to cross into Gaza, once the border is reopened.
Global reaction to the ceasefire was enthusiastic. Leaders and officials of Egypt, Turkey, Britain, the United Nations, the European Union, Jordan, Germany and the United Arab Emirates, among others, celebrated the news.
Biden and Trump both claimed credit for the deal that was months in the making but was helped across the line by a Trump emissary.
Palestinians gather to receive food aid being distributed in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, yesterday. Photo: AFP
Israel delays cabinet vote on ceasefire deal
Hamas is committed to ceasefire deal: official
Trucks carrying aid lining up in Egyptian border town
Israel airstrikes killed 77 people in Gaza yesterday, residents and authorities in the enclave said, hours after a ceasefire and hostage release deal was announced to bring an end to 15 months of offensive.
The complex ceasefire accord emerged on Wednesday after mediation by Qatar, Egypt and the US to stop the offensive that has devastated the coastal territory and inflamed the Middle East.
The deal, scheduled to be implemented from Sunday, outlines a six-week initial ceasefire with the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, where tens of thousands have been killed. Hostages taken by Hamas, which controls the enclave, would be freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel.
Israel's acceptance of the deal will not be official until it is approved by the country's security cabinet and government, and a vote was slated for yesterday, an Israeli official said.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of making last-minute demands and going back on agreements.
"The Israeli cabinet will not convene until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement," a statement from Netanyahu's office said. It was unclear what impact the latest delay will have on the deal.
Hamas is committed to the ceasefire agreement announced by mediators on Wednesday, senior group official Izzat el-Reshiq said yesterday.
Hardliners in Netanyahu's government were still hoping to stop the deal, though a majority of ministers were still expected to back it.
While people celebrated the pact in Gaza and Israel, Israel's military conducted more attacks after the announcement, the civil emergency service and residents said.
Yesterday, Hamas fighters fired a rocket into Israel, the Israeli military said, causing no casualties.
Israeli airstrikes throughout the night and early yesterday killed at least 77 Palestinians, including women and children, raising the death toll to 46,788 people, according to Gaza health officials.
The agreement calls for a surge in humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross said they were preparing to scale up their aid operations.
Rows of aid trucks were lined up in the Egyptian border town of El-Arish waiting to cross into Gaza, once the border is reopened.
Global reaction to the ceasefire was enthusiastic. Leaders and officials of Egypt, Turkey, Britain, the United Nations, the European Union, Jordan, Germany and the United Arab Emirates, among others, celebrated the news.
Biden and Trump both claimed credit for the deal that was months in the making but was helped across the line by a Trump emissary.