Israel may approve Gaza Strip agreement tomorrow – CNN
Photo: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Getty Images)
Israel's war cabinet and government may approve the Gaza Strip agreement as early as tomorrow, January 17. This would be a step toward a ceasefire and the beginning of hostage releases, CNN reports.
The news agency, citing an Israeli official, reports that the cabinet vote is expected on Friday morning.
The meeting will take place a day later than initially planned. Today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced the postponement due to negotiators in Doha (Qatar) still working to resolve the remaining disagreements.
In fact, the news about the cabinet convening on Friday indicates that these issues have been resolved.
According to Israeli media, disagreements with Hamas were settled regarding a clause granting Israel veto power over the release of militants whose actions led to mass casualties among Israelis. It is also reported that each name of individuals to be released in exchange for hostages in the Gaza Strip is being discussed.
For Israel to approve the agreement, it needs to be approved by members of the military-political cabinet and the government. If everything goes according to plan, the ceasefire agreement will come into force at 12:15 pm on Sunday, 19 January. On the same day, the militants are to release three Israeli hostages.
Who in the government opposes the agreement
According to The Times of Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu is set to meet again today with Finance Minister and leader of the Religious Zionism coalition party, Bezalel Smotrich, to persuade him not to leave the government over the Gaza Strip agreement.
It is expected that the cabinet may adopt a separate resolution stating that the war against Hamas will not end until it is destroyed both militarily and administratively.
In this case, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will likely shift focus from the Gaza Strip to eliminating terrorists in the West Bank.
Meanwhile, according to Channel 12, even if Smotrich and his far-right colleague, Otzma Yehudit party leader Itamar Ben-Gvir, vote against the agreement, it will still be approved by both the war cabinet and the entire government.
Israel-Hamas agreement
According to media reports, the plan consists of three stages.
The first stage will last 42 days. During this period, Hamas terrorists are to release 33 Israeli hostages — children, women, the elderly, and the sick.
If everything goes according to plan, negotiations for the second stage will begin on the 16th day (after January 19). This phase will focus on the release of male hostages. In exchange, Israel will gradually withdraw its troops from most of the Gaza Strip but will maintain control over the buffer zone.
Israel will also release a number of militants held in Israeli prisons, with reports mentioning up to 1,000 individuals. The third stage involves the transfer of the bodies of deceased hostages and the development of a construction plan and a new governance structure for Gaza.
For more details, read the RBC-Ukraine material Painful compromise: Why Israel and Hamas came to terms and what lies ahead.
Israeli military analyst David Sharp stated in a comment for RBC-Ukraine's YouTube channel that Israel's current delay in approving the agreement is unlikely to mean that the deal itself is in jeopardy.
