Israel vote on Gaza ceasefire deal delayed

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delayed a vote to ratify a Gaza ceasefire deal, due Thursday, accusing Hamas of seeking to change the deal at the last minute.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said “accordingly” it is close to being closed and he is confident that the shutdown will resume on Sunday as planned.

Although Israeli negotiators approved the deal after months of negotiations, it cannot be implemented until it is approved by the defense minister and the government.

Hamas has said it is committed to the deal, but the BBC understands it is trying to add some of its members to the list of Palestinian prisoners to be released under the deal.

The delay came after a fresh Israeli airstrike in Gaza following Wednesday’s announcement of a truce killed more than 80 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Hours before Thursday morning’s meeting, Netanyahu accused Hamas of wanting to “grab the last bit of money”.

The cabinet did not meet until Hamas accepted “all aspects of the agreement,” a statement from his office read.

Blinken said such delays are to be expected in such a “critical” crisis.

“It is not surprising that in the negotiations and negotiations that have been difficult and difficult, you can find an end,” he said at a press conference in Washington.

“We’re building that loose end as we speak.”

He said the US was “confident” the deal would go into effect on Sunday as planned, and that the ceasefire would continue.

Israeli media reported that the cabinet is expected to meet on Friday to approve the deal and that the issue has reportedly been resolved, although this has not been officially confirmed.

Most Israeli ministers are expected to reject the deal, but on Thursday Defense Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said his far-right party would leave Netanyahu’s government if it is accepted.

“The agreement that is taking place is reckless,” Ben-Gvir told a press conference, adding that it “will wipe out what happened in the war”.

However, he said his Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party would not want to topple the government if the deal is approved.

He urged the leader of another far-flung party in the government, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the Religious Zionist Party, to join him in resigning.

Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official told the BBC that the group is committed to the agreement it announced with mediators.

The head of the Hamas delegation, Khalil al-Hayya, has informed Qatar and Egypt that they will accept all the agreements, the official told the BBC.

But BBC Gaza correspondent Rushdi Abualouf understands that Hamas is trying to add the names of one or two members to the list of prisoners to be released under the deal.

The first six-week phase of the agreement will see 33 hostages – including women, children and the elderly – exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Israeli forces have moved back to the east, away from the heavily populated areas of Gaza.

Palestinian refugees can begin to return home and hundreds of aid trucks are allowed to enter the area every day.

Negotiations for the second phase – which should see the remaining prisoners released, the complete withdrawal of the Israeli army and a return to “sustainable peace” – will begin on the 16th.

The third and final phase involves repatriating the remaining bodies and rebuilding Gaza – which could take years.

The airstrikes in Israel continued after they were announced on Wednesday. At least 12 people have been killed in Gaza City, with a doctor telling BBC staff that he “didn’t rest for a minute” during the “night of blood”.

Attacks have been carried out on 50 targets in Gaza since the agreement was announced, the Israeli army and the Israel Security Agency said.

Qatar’s prime minister – who acted as a mediator in the talks – called for “calm” on both sides before the start of the first six-week phase of the ceasefire agreement.

Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas – which is listed as a terrorist group by Israel, the US and others – in response to an unprecedented Israeli attack on 7 October 2023, in which nearly 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were killed. to be caught.

More than 46,788 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the region’s Hamas-run health ministry.

Many of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have also fled their homes, there is widespread destruction and there are severe shortages of food, fuel, medicine and shelter, as aid agencies struggle to get aid to those in need.

Israel says 94 of those captured are still being held by Hamas, 34 of whom are presumed dead. There are four Israelis who were kidnapped before the war, two of them died.