Israel-Hamas war live: Netanyahu tells entire cabinet Israel will continue war even if hostage deal is agreed – The Guardian

Pause in fighting could be extended if Hamas locates more hostages – Times of Israel

The Times of Israel also reports that 30 more hostages may be released and that the pause in fighting could be extended “by one day for each group of 10 additional Israeli hostages”:

Israel estimates that Hamas could locate about 30 more Israeli mothers and children beyond the initial 50, and that the cessation of fighting could be extended by one day for each group of 10 more Israeli hostages located and freed said the government official.

“Hamas claims it cannot immediately locate the 10 or so children abducted from Israel during the shock October 7 attack.”

50 hostages, women and children, to be released during four-day lull in fighting – Israeli government

Portal reports that the Israeli prime minister’s office announced that the deal approved by the Cabinet calls for the release of 50 hostages, women and children, within four days, during which there will be a lull in fighting.

According to the Times of Israel, the ceasefire is expected to last at least four days

The Times of Israel reports that in exchange for the release of hostages, Israel “agreed to a ceasefire of at least four days for the first time since the outbreak of war.”

The first hostages could be released on Thursday if there is no challenge in the Supreme Court

Previously, Israeli media, including Channel 12 News, reported that the first release of hostages if the deal was approved was expected on Thursday.

The delay is because if the agreement is approved, there must be a 24-hour waiting period before it is implemented to allow Israeli citizens to petition the Supreme Court to block the release of Palestinian prisoners, it said Israeli media reports.

50 Israeli citizens are expected to be released within days, the Times of Israel reports

The Times of Israel, citing an unnamed government official, reports that the deal voted on by Israel’s cabinet calls for the release of “50 living Israeli citizens, mostly women and children, in groups of 12 to 13 people per day.”

“There were no immediate details about how ministers voted. While the vast majority of the government’s 38 ministers supported the agreement, representatives of the far-right Otzma Yehudit and Religious Zionism parties expressed opposition to the agreement ahead of the meeting,” the Times of Israel reports.

“Not all details of the agreement have been officially released to the public, but an Israeli government official who briefed reporters on Tuesday said the agreement is expected to include the release of 50 living Israeli citizens, mostly women and children, in groups of 12 to 12 30 years. 13 people per day.”

Hospitals in Israel are preparing to receive hostages

Six hospitals in Israel are preparing to accept hostages, Haaretz reports. “They have set up special facilities to accommodate them separately from other patients and the media.”

The official Haaretz source said that “all branches of the Israeli security services – the IDF, the Shin Bet and the Mossad – support the proposed deal.” The official added that the agreement only applies to living Israelis, adding “We added that Hamas could release foreigners at the same time in accordance with the agreements reached with these countries.”

Israeli government approves hostage deal – Israeli media

Breaking news: Israeli news organizations Haaretz and Kan, the national broadcaster, report that Israel’s cabinet voted to approve the hostage deal, which, Haaretz reports, “allows for the exchange of hostages held by the organization for Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons.” .”

Citing a senior Israeli official, Haaretz reports that “the plan calls for Hamas to release 30 kidnapped children, eight mothers and 12 other women during a five-day ceasefire.”

Updated at 01:14 GMT

If you’re just joining us, here’s how things stand: The Israeli government is meeting into the early hours of Wednesday morning to discuss a deal for Palestinian Hamas militants to release some hostages in Gaza in exchange for a multi-day ceasefire and the to advise release of a larger number of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

It is currently just before 3 a.m. in Tel Aviv and Gaza City.

Officials from Qatar, which brokered the negotiations, as well as the United States, Israel and Hamas have said for days that an agreement was imminent.

Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said the proposal for a hostage release agreement was delivered to Israel in the early hours of Tuesday.

“The State of Qatar is waiting for the outcome of the Israeli government’s vote on the proposal,” he said.

Before meeting with his entire government, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with his war cabinet and wider national security cabinet on Tuesday about the deal.

A U.S. official briefed on the talks said the deal would include the abduction of 50 hostages from Israel, mostly women and children, in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners and a break in fighting of four to five days.

The pause would also allow humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The US attacks two “facilities” in Iraq

The US carried out attacks on two facilities in Iraq on Tuesday, the US military said.

“U.S. Central Command forces conducted discreet precision strikes against two installations in Iraq,” the U.S. military said in a statement.

“The attacks were a direct response to attacks by Iran and Iranian-backed groups on U.S. and coalition forces,” the statement continued.

These attacks appear to be in addition to the recently reported attacks, which were described as involving “an Iranian-backed militia vehicle and a number of Iranian-backed militia personnel involved.” [an attack last night by Iran-backed militias].”

Al Jazeera reports that a Palestinian has died “as a result of being shot by occupation forces in the town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya, in the northern West Bank.”

UN records a 40% increase in diarrhea cases in the last two weeks and warns of the risk of pneumonia in children

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports in its daily update from Gaza that there has been a 35% increase in skin diseases and a 40% increase in diarrheal diseases in the last two weeks due to “extremely overcrowded conditions” at UNRWA be shelters.

“Poor sanitary conditions, combined with recent cold rains, have exacerbated the risk of epidemics and could lead to an increase in pneumonia among children, according to WHO,” writes UNOCHA.

The Times of Israel has this report from the Cabinet meeting to debate the hostage deal. “Ministers from the ultra-Orthodox Shas party walked out of the meeting after leaving a message saying they supported the deal,” the Times of Israel reports, and there were tense exchanges between the ministers:

According to reports, during the ongoing Cabinet vote on a deal that would see Hamas release around 50 hostages – children, mothers and women – in exchange for a four to five day ceasefire and the release of 150 to 300 Palestinian prisoners, to several tense arguments.

According to leaked Hebrew media, Minister Benny Gantz reacts angrily to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich for expressing concern that Hamas will try to extend the ceasefire. Smotrich and his far-right Religious Zionism party have spoken out against the agreement.

“Do you trust [Yahya] “Sinwar more than us?” Gantz is quoted as saying, referring to the Hamas chief in Gaza, whom Israel has accused of helping in the October 7 massacres.

In another exchange, Likud ministers Miki Zohar and Gila Gamliel take national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir to task for holding a faction meeting of his ultra-nationalist Otzma Yehudit party before the Cabinet meeting, after he announced that he and his faction would oppose the Agreements would be correct. Gamliel reportedly emphasizes the importance of unity to Ben Gvir.

“But we don’t agree,” says Ben Gvir. “This is a decision with generational harm that will seriously harm us.”

Ministers from the ultra-Orthodox Shas party walked out of the meeting after leaving a note saying they supported the agreement.

Which hostages have been released since October 7th?

Hamas has so far released only four hostages: US citizens Judith Raanan, 59, and her daughter Natalie Raanan, 17, on October 20, citing “humanitarian reasons,” and Israeli women Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yocheved Lifshitz, 85 , on October 20th October 23rd.

The armed wing of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, which was involved in the Oct. 7 raid along with Hamas, said late Tuesday that one of the Israeli hostages it had been holding since the attacks on Israel had died.

“We previously expressed our readiness to release them on humanitarian grounds, but the enemy hesitated and this led to their deaths,” Al-Quds Brigades said on its Telegram channel.