GAZA, (PIC)
The ceasefire in the Gaza Strip between the Hamas Movement and Israel will come into effect on Sunday, January 19, at 08:30 a.m. local time in Gaza, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman announced in a post on X.
“We advise our brothers to take precautions, exercise utmost caution and wait instructions from official sources,” spokesman for the ministry Majed al-Ansari said on Saturday.
Israel’s security cabinet approved on Friday evening a deal with Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza after more than 460 days of genocidal war in which the Israeli occupation army has killed more than 46,788 Palestinians and wounded 110,453 others.
Israel’s government has approved the new Gaza ceasefire and prisoner release deal with Hamas, paving the way for it to take effect on Sunday.
The Israeli decision came after hours of discussions that continued late into the night. 24 ministers in Netanyahu’s coalition government voted in favor of the deal while eight others opposed it.
Under the deal, the ceasefire starts with an initial six-week phase where captives in Gaza are released in exchange for Palestinians detained in Israeli jails.
According to the Hebrew media, Hamas has demanded a lull in the Gaza Strip for 48 hours before the agreement enters into force on Sunday in order to be able to facilitate the handover of prisoners on the first day.
The Hebrew media quoted Israeli official sources as saying that the release of the first group of Israeli captives in Gaza may start at 04:00 p.m. on Sunday.
After the ceasefire was ratified by the Israeli cabinet, Israeli ministry of justice released an updated list of 737 Palestinian detainees slated to be freed in the first phase of the agreement, which will also take place “not before” 04:00 p.m. on Sunday. This list includes 95 women and children who are being held in Israeli jails.
Another group of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, who were kidnaped by Israeli forces from Gaza during the war, would be released in the first phase. They could be under age 19.
In a related context, the Asra Media Office (AMO) has said that the published Israeli list of the Palestinian prisoners slated for release in the first phase of the hostage deal is a procedure that concerns the Israelis.
In a statement on Saturday, AMO explained that the mechanism for releasing prisoners in the first stage of the agreement is linked to the number of the Israeli captives intended for release and their categories.
AMO added that lists containing the names of the prisoners would be published ahead of each exchange day in accordance with a mechanism agreed upon by the parties.
The lists of the Palestinian prisoners include several members of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah Movement. Some of the detainees are serving life sentences, according to different media sources.
