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Israel and Hamas have agreed to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, US and Qatari mediators say.
If Israel’s cabinet and government formally approve the deal, which has yet to happen, the first six-week phase will take effect on January 19.
The agreement comes after fighting between Israel and the Palestinian armed group and political movement Hamas.
The current conflict began on October 7, 2023, when hundreds of Hamas fighters crossed Israel’s southern border, killing around 1,200 people and returning more than 250 hostages to Gaza.
Israel responded with a military campaign, beginning immediately with an aerial bombardment, followed by a full-scale ground invasion on 27 October. Since then, Israel has attacked targets in Gaza by land, sea and air, while Hamas has attacked them with rockets.
More than 46,700 people – most of them civilians – have been killed by Israel’s attacks, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry.
Here is a reminder of the key events of the negotiations.
2023
October 7: Hundreds of men led by Hamas are launching an unprecedented attack in southern Israel, bursting through the border fence and targeting nearby communities, police stations and army bases. About 1,200 people were killed and 251 hostages were taken to Gaza. Hamas also fires thousands of rockets into Israel. The Israeli army immediately responds with air and artillery strikes in Gaza.
October 27: Israel launches a ground invasion of Gaza. Israel’s massive military campaign will devastate Gaza, displace most of its 2.3 million residents and kill more than 46,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
November 21: A deal between the US, Qatar and Egypt saw Hamas release 105 hostages in exchange for around 240 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails during a week-long ceasefire. Israel and Hamas blame each other for causing the collapse of the truce.
December 28: Shuttle diplomacy on a new ceasefire and hostage release agreement begins.
2024
May 31: US President Joe Biden outlines the Israel’s proposal In favor of a three-phase ceasefire to release Israeli hostages. It is the basis of the agreement that is agreed eight months later.
June 10: United Nations Security Council gives a resolution supporting the ceasefire plan.
July 31: Conversations are suspended After Israel’s murder Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas’ political leader and chief negotiator, in the Iranian capital, Tehran. Discussions begin two weeks later, initially in the absence of Hamas.
October 17: Israeli forces Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed South of Gaza. Netanyahu calls the “beginning of the end” of the war.
November 9: After months of no progress, Qatar interrupts his efforts as a mediator in negotiations. He says Israel and Hamas should change positions. Both sides blame each other for the impasse.
November 20: USA vetoes a draft The UN Security Council resolution called for an immediate ceasefire, saying it had “set aside” the need for “a link between the ceasefire and the release of the hostages”.
November 27: Israel supports the ceasefire The Gaza war with Lebanon led to an end to the 13-month conflict with the armed group Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas. It raises hopes for a deal in Gaza, and Biden has said he will make another push with regional powers.
December 2: Donald Trump elected US President He says there will be “hell to pay.” If the hostages still in Gaza are not released by the time he returns to the White House on January 20, 2025.
December 17: A senior Palestinian official says the indirect talks they are in a “decisive and final phase”, while Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz says an agreement is closer than ever.
2025
January 13: Biden and Netanyahu speak by phone about negotiations in Biden’s final week in office, after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was a deal “very close” and that Trump hoped to “get out front” before taking office.
January 15: Qatar’s prime minister says Israel and Hamas have agreed to a cease-fire and hostage-freeing deal in Gaza, which will come into effect on January 19. Biden says he will “stop the fighting in Gaza, increase much-needed humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians and reunite hostages with their families.”
