from Times of Israel
In a pivotal vote early Wednesday morning, the full Israeli cabinet approved an agreement to secure the release by Hamas of roughly 50 Israeli hostages who were abducted and taken into Gaza during the terror group’s October 7 terror onslaught. Some 240 hostages are being held overall. The deal was approved by 35 votes to three. A first group of some 12-13 hostages could be released as soon as Thursday.
Despite expressing earlier opposition to the agreement, the far-right Religious Zionism party voted in favor, with only members of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s ultranationalist Otzma Yehudit faction voting against.
An Israeli government official briefing reporters on Tuesday said the deal was expected to see the release of 50 living Israeli citizens — children, mothers and other women — in groups of 12-13 people over four days. In exchange, Israel has agreed to a ceasefire for those four days, for the first time since the outbreak of the war, as well as the release of 150 teenage and female Palestinian security prisoners. The halt in fighting could be extended by one additional day for each additional group of 10 hostages freed, after which Israel’s campaign to destroy Hamas in Gaza is to resume...
The vast majority, 287 of the 300 security prisoners scheduled for possible release, are males aged 18 and under — most of them held for rioting and rock-throwing in the West Bank or East Jerusalem. The other 13 prisoners are adult women, most of them convicted of attempted terror stabbings...
Israel also agreed to allow additional fuel into Gaza as well as significant amounts of humanitarian aid, which have been restricted due to the ongoing war.
Hamas said that as part of the ceasefire, Israel will stop drone flights over southern Gaza and only carry them out in the north of the enclave for six hours a day, 10 a.m.-4 p.m...
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