Summary
The time is 3:15 in Israel and Gaza. Here are the latest developments:
-
The much anticipated ceasefire, which comes in three phases, began at 11:15 local time (9:15 GMT) after a nearly three-hour delay.
-
Hamas blamed “technical reasons” for the delay, but subsequently released the names of the three hostages it says will be the first to be freed: Doron Steinbrecher, 31, and dual British-Israeli Emily Damari, 28, who were kidnapped from their kibbutz, and Romi Gonen, 24, who was taken from the Supernova Festival in October 2023.
-
The Palestinian civil emergency service said Israeli military airstrikes killed at least 13 Palestinian people in attacks across the Gaza Strip during the delay.
-
The Israeli prime minister’s office said this morning that the release of three hostages held by Hamas in Gaza would take place after 1400 GMT on Sunday.
In a statement, it also said four other living female hostages would be freed in seven days. -
There are scenes of jubilation across the strip as thousands of Palestinians start returning home.
-
Several hundred aid delivery trucks, including 20 carrying fuel, began arriving at the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing before entry into the Gaza as part of an agreed humanitarian surge for the strip’s 2.3 million residents.
-
Israeli forces have started withdrawing from areas in Gaza’s Rafah to the Philadelphi corridor along the border between Egypt and Gaza, according to reports.
-
Israel’s far-right national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s party announced it was leaving the country’s ruling coalition in protest at what it called the “scandalous” Gaza ceasefire agreement. Benjamin Netanyahu’s slim majority remains intact.
-
The far right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, called on Israel to occupy the Gaza Strip and install a military government, threatening to overthrow the government if this does not happen. He has said he will not remain in a government that stops the war.
You can read our latest report about the ceasefire negotiations here.
Key events
A spokesperson for the family of Emily Damari, a British-Israeli hostage due to be released by Hamas today, has spoken of the agony they have suffered since 7 October.
“These final few hours have been the most agonising that you can imagine, after nearly 500 days of unending torment for Mandy and all the other families,” Emily Cohen, the spokesperson, said.
“Obviously this is amazing news for Mandy and Emily’s entire family, but she will only believe it when she actually gets to see Emily alive and give her that hug she’s been dreaming of. Being so close to that moment makes the pain even more intense.
“As a mother, seeing how Mandy has campaigned tirelessly for Emily for the past 471 days has been utterly inspiring.
“I cannot begin to explain how brave and fearless she has been fighting for her daughter, pressuring world leaders and international organisations relentlessly and constantly.
“Given how unbearable the last few hours have been and the rollercoaster of emotions, please respect Mandy’s privacy at this very critical time.
“I know she wants everyone to know how deeply grateful she is to the British public, MPs, football supporters and strangers from around the world, who have been praying and campaigning for Emily’s release.”
World Food Programme aid trucks cross into Gaza
The World Food Programme says its aid trucks have begun crossing into Gaza via the Zikim and Kerem Shalom crossings. The agency says its trucks are carrying wheat flour and ready-to-eat food parcels.
In a statement, the WFP says it “aims to deliver food daily along humanitarian corridors that include Egypt, Jordan and Israel crossing points. This ceasefire is critical for the humanitarian response. Safety, and access must be ensured.”
The WFO, a UN humanitarian organisation, has called for all border crossings to open in order for it to safely move food into Gaza. It has called for security teams for its members and convoys. “We need more humanitarian staff allowed into Gaza,” it says. “And we need urgent funding to reach everyone in need, quickly.”
Summary
The time is 3:15 in Israel and Gaza. Here are the latest developments:
-
The much anticipated ceasefire, which comes in three phases, began at 11:15 local time (9:15 GMT) after a nearly three-hour delay.
-
Hamas blamed “technical reasons” for the delay, but subsequently released the names of the three hostages it says will be the first to be freed: Doron Steinbrecher, 31, and dual British-Israeli Emily Damari, 28, who were kidnapped from their kibbutz, and Romi Gonen, 24, who was taken from the Supernova Festival in October 2023.
-
The Palestinian civil emergency service said Israeli military airstrikes killed at least 13 Palestinian people in attacks across the Gaza Strip during the delay.
-
The Israeli prime minister’s office said this morning that the release of three hostages held by Hamas in Gaza would take place after 1400 GMT on Sunday.
In a statement, it also said four other living female hostages would be freed in seven days. -
There are scenes of jubilation across the strip as thousands of Palestinians start returning home.
-
Several hundred aid delivery trucks, including 20 carrying fuel, began arriving at the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing before entry into the Gaza as part of an agreed humanitarian surge for the strip’s 2.3 million residents.
-
Israeli forces have started withdrawing from areas in Gaza’s Rafah to the Philadelphi corridor along the border between Egypt and Gaza, according to reports.
-
Israel’s far-right national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s party announced it was leaving the country’s ruling coalition in protest at what it called the “scandalous” Gaza ceasefire agreement. Benjamin Netanyahu’s slim majority remains intact.
-
The far right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, called on Israel to occupy the Gaza Strip and install a military government, threatening to overthrow the government if this does not happen. He has said he will not remain in a government that stops the war.
You can read our latest report about the ceasefire negotiations here.
The Palestinian government is scheduled to hold a major meeting this evening to coordinate plans to streamline the recovery and humanitarian efforts in Gaza that are hoped to be implemented under the ceasefire agreement. The following is from a report by Palestinian news agency Wafa which goes into detail about the meeting:
Key ministries involved include the ministry of social development, ministry of public works, ministry of local government, ministry of health, the water and energy authorities, as well as the Red Crescent Society.
Mohammed Abu al-Rob, director of the government communications office, confirmed in a statement to Wafa that the meeting aims to enhance coordination between the government and international relief agencies, particularly regarding emergency response operations in the region.
He emphasised ongoing efforts between the ministry of public works and the United Nations development programme (UNDP) to begin the first phase of rubble removal in vital areas of Gaza, in collaboration with local authorities.
Abu al-Rob also discussed the critical cooperation between the ministry of health and international health organisations operating in Gaza. The goal is to bolster the capacity of health institutions to provide urgent medical care to the tens of thousands of injured individuals.
Further, he emphasised the role of the ministry of social development and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in distributing aid, noting that the ministry is set to receive several shipments of humanitarian supplies from the Red Crescent. These shipments will be distributed to eligible families based on the ministry’s national registry, which identifies those most in need.
In addition, the government has instructed the water and energy authorities to expand efforts to repair the main water connections and introduce fuel shipments to operate water pumping stations. This will ensure the supply of drinking water and the proper handling of wastewater to prevent contamination in residential areas.
Celebrations erupt in Gaza as ceasefire comes into effect – video
Here is a video of Palestinian people celebrating in the streets of central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah as the much-anticipated ceasefire deal came into effect this morning:
Israeli finance minister says he’ll ‘overthrow the government’ if Israel doesn’t occupy Gaza
The far right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, who is the head of the Religious Zionist Party, has reportedly called on Israel to occupy the Gaza Strip and install a military government, threatening to overthrow the government if this does not happen.
Israel “must occupy Gaza and create a temporary military government because there is no other way to defeat Hamas,” he was quoted as having told Israel’s Army Radio.
“I will overthrow the government if it does not return to fighting in a way that [leads to us] taking over the entire Gaza Strip and governing it,” he said, adding that Israel would provide humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza in that scenario. Smotrich has called the Gaza ceasefire agreement a “very serious mistake” and a “surrender to Hamas”.
On Thursday, Smotrich’s party said in a statement that its condition for remaining in the government would be a return to fighting at the end of the first phase of the deal, in order to destroy Hamas and bring all the hostages back.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has become more reliant on the support of Smotrich and other far-right elements of his coalition government since the former defence minister Benny Gantz quit Israel’s emergency war cabinet last summer in a row over strategy in the war on Gaza and how to bring home Israeli hostages. Netanyahu has said previously that he does not want to permanently occupy the Gaza Strip.
Earlier today, far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir announced his Otzma Yehudit party’s withdrawal from Netanyahu’s fragile coalition after the ceasefire announcement, meaning the coalition goes on with 62 parliamentary seats in the 120-seat Knesset.
Charities cautiously optimistic as first aid trucks enter Gaza under ceasefire agreement
There are hopes that the ceasefire will help to, at least partly, ease the dire humanitarian crisis caused by Israel’s war on Gaza, with widespread shortages of food, medicine and clean water across the strip. Displaced by Israeli airstrikes, hundreds of thousands of Palestinian people have been packed into crowded refugee camps along the coast, enduring cold winter weather amid widespread malnutrition. Aid groups have struggled to deliver food and supplies and say there are shortages of blankets, warm clothing and firewood.
About 200 aid delivery trucks, including 20 carrying fuel, began arriving on Sunday at the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing ahead of entry into the Gaza Strip, two Egyptian sources have told Reuters.
The first trucks of supplies started entering the strip minutes after the ceasefire took effect on Sunday morning, UN aid official Jonathan Whittall, interim chief of the UN’s OCHA aid agency for the Palestinian territories, wrote in a post on X.
“A massive effort has been underway over the past days from humanitarian partners to load and prepare to distribute a surge of aid across all of Gaza,” he wrote.
Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) charities – such as actionaid and Oxfam – are cautiously “hopeful” they can increase aid in Gaza following the news of the ceasefire this morning. It says the scale of the humanitarian challenge is “overwhelming”, with the delivery of food, medical care and shelter being the immediate priorities.
Some bakeries, hospitals and other essential facilities that were forced to close during the war will soon reopen, and with fewer restrictions on movement within the strip, essential services such as water trucking and medical care can be expanded, the DEC said in a press release.
Saleh Saeed, chief executive of the DEC, said:
After so many months of suffering caused by this conflict, we hope this ceasefire can provide some relief to millions of people whose lives have been devastated. DEC member charities and their local partners are hopeful it will provide them with a vital chance to scale up their programmes in Gaza and reach many more people in need.
People are living in unbearably harsh conditions without access to the basic supplies they need to survive. The generous donations by the UK public to the Middle East Humanitarian appeal have already enabled our member charities and their local partners to reach some of the most vulnerable with support, and with increased aid access they could do so much more. Please donate now.
Hamas says Israel will submit list of 90 Palestinian prisoners to be freed on Sunday
Hamas said Israel is set to hand over a list with the names of 90 Palestinian prisoners to be released later today in exchange for three Israeli female hostages held by the militant group in Gaza. In a statement, Hamas said the prisoners included women and children.
“The occupation is expected to hand over shortly a list containing the names of 90 prisoners from the categories of women and children who are set to be released on the first day of the ceasefire,” Hamas said, adding the truce deal stipulated “the release of 30 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one civilian detainee”.
Death toll from Israeli attacks on Gaza reaches 46,913, says health ministry
At least 46,913 Palestinian people have been killed and 110,750 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since 7 October 2023, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The death toll does not include Palestinians killed by Israeli forces overnight or from Sunday morning before the ceasefire came into effect.
Gaza’s health ministry has said in the past that thousands of other dead people are most likely lost in the rubble of the territory.
As we have already mentioned, Hamas has named the three female hostages it will release today as Emily Damari, 28, Doron Steinbrecher, 31, and Romi Gonen, 24.
Damari is the only remaining British citizen still being held in Gaza. She is a dual UK citizen. Her and Steinbrecher were taken hostage from their homes in the Kibbutz Kfar Aza on 7 October, 2023, when Hamas led attacks on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people. According to the Times of Israel, they lived in the kibbutz’s “young generation” neighbourhood — out of the 37 residents there, 11 people were reportedly killed and seven others abducted and taken to Gaza. You can read more about the three female hostages here.
The BBC’s Lucy Manning has spoken to a “source” close to the Damari family. They said:
All Emily’s mum Mandy wants to do is hug Emily. But she won’t believe it until she sees it. It’s been a torturous 471 days, but a particularly torturous 24 hours.
Until she’s out and Mandy can actually see that she’s out … It hasn’t happened until it happens. It’s not done until it’s done. And there’s a long road ahead.
They’ve no idea what condition they are in, and there are other hostages who need to be released and need humanitarian aid to be kept alive. It’s a long, long road ahead.
Mandy is very grateful for all the love and support, advocacy and prayers. They are pleading with people to respect the family’s privacy. It’s an extremely sensitive time.
It’s an absolute blessing Doron Steinbrecher and Emily are both on the list because the mums are best friends.
More details on first and second stages of ceasefire deal
Israeli forces have reportedly already started withdrawing from areas in the southern city of Rafah to the Philadelphi corridor along the border between Egypt and Gaza. We have not been able to independently verify this information yet.
Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement, Israel is supposed to begin withdrawing from “urban areas” in the territory immediately. Here is a timeline of what is expected to happen on specific days over the next couple of months:
Stage 1
-
Sunday 19 January (day 1): Phase one begins. Three hostages to return, about 95 Palestinians to be released from prison (those from Gaza taken back, those from West Bank dropped off in Ramallah, serious offenders to be deported to a third country).
-
Sunday 26 January (day 7). Four hostages to return. More Palestinians released.
-
Sunday 2 February (day 14). Four hostages to return, more Palestinians released, more withdrawal by Israeli forces from the Netzarim corridor, separating what was once the densely populated Gaza City from the rest of the strip.
-
Tuesday 4 February (day 16). Negotiations thrashing out details of Stage II to begin.
-
Sunday 9 February (day 21). Three hostages to return, Palestinians released, more withdrawal from the Netzarim corridor.
-
Monday 10 February (day 22). Access to north allowed via Salah al Din road too (the main road crossing the length of Gaza).
-
Sunday 16 February (day 28). Three more hostages to return, more Palestinians released.
-
Sunday 23 February (day 35). Three more hostages to return, more Palestinians released.
-
Sunday 2 March (day 42). 14 hostages to return, more Palestinians released. Rafah due to reopen – all injured and sick Palestinian civilians to be allowed to leave; 50 injured fighters a day allowed to leave.
Stage 2
How will the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal work?
Here are the main elements of the ceasefire deal, as outlined by my colleague Bethan McKernan. You can read her explainer about the agreement and whether or not it is likely to lead to a permanent ceasefire here.
What’s in the deal?
-
All fighting is to pause during the first 42-day phase. Israeli forces are to withdraw from Gaza’s cities to a “buffer zone” along the edge of the strip, displaced Palestinians will be able to return home and there will be a marked increase in aid deliveries.
-
In the second stage, of unclear duration, the remaining living hostages will be returned and a corresponding ratio of Palestinian prisoners freed, alongside a complete Israeli withdrawal from the strip. The Rafah crossing to Egypt will be opened for the sick and wounded to leave. It is unclear whether it will be returned to Palestinian control.
-
The third phase, which could last years, would address the exchange of bodies of deceased hostages and Hamas members, and a reconstruction plan for Gaza. Much of the international community has advocated for the semi-autonomous West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, which lost control of Gaza to Hamas in 2007, to return to the strip. Israel, however, has repeatedly rejected the suggestion.
How will stage one work?
-
A total of 33 hostages will be released over the next six weeks, in exchange for about 1,700 Palestinians held in Israel prisons, about 1,000 of whom are from Gaza and were arrested after 7 October 2023 under emergency legislation which allowed detention without charge or trial.
-
Three female captives – named by Hamas as Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari – will be freed first in exchange for about 95 Palestinians. A handful of Israelis will then be released every Sunday for the next six weeks; the number of Palestinians to be freed upon their return generally depends on whether the Israelis are civilians or soldiers. Some of the freed Palestinians from the West Bank sentenced for serious crimes against Israelis will be sent to third countries rather than be allowed to return home.
-
In Gaza, people displaced from their homes will be allowed to move freely around the Palestinian territory from day seven, and 600 trucks of aid will arrive each day to alleviate the strip’s dire humanitarian conditions. Supplies to Gaza are currently at an average of 18 truckloads a day; aid agencies say 500 a day is needed at a minimum.
