The six-week phase one truce calls for the release of 33 hostages and nearly 2,000 prisoners, as well as the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza and an increase in humanitarian aid to the devastated territory
Israel and Hamas are set next week to begin negotiating a second phase of the ceasefire, which calls for releasing the remaining hostages and extending the truce indefinitely. The war could resume in early March if an agreement is not reached
Palestinian health authorities in Gaza also announced that the long-shuttered Rafah border crossing with Egypt would reopen on Saturday for thousands of Palestinians who desperately need medical care, a breakthrough that signals the ceasefire agreement continues to gain traction
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he spoke Saturday evening with President Donald Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. They agreed that negotiations on the Gaza ceasefire's second phase will begin at their meeting Monday in Washington
Talks on the ceasefire's more difficult second phase have been set to begin Monday, two weeks into the six-week first phase. Netanyahu's office said he and Witkoff will discuss Israel's positions and Witkoff later in the week will speak with the other mediators, Qatar and Egypt
Concerted pressure by the incoming Trump administration and outgoing Biden one was cited as a factor in achieving this ceasefire after months of stalled talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu named a new military chief of staff to take up the role once the current head general resigns in March
Netanyahu's office said Saturday that Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir would replace Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi. Halevi said last month he was resigning over Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack, the worst security disaster in Israel's history
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