Freed hostages and a fragile pause

International Red Cross vehicles carrying hostages released by Hamas cross the Rafah border point in the Gaza Strip toward Egypt on Nov. 25. (Loay Ayyoub for The Washington Post)

Over the weekend, Israeli families celebrated the return of dozens of the hostages taken by Hamas, after the militant group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7. In exchange, Israel released more than 100 imprisoned Palestinian women and teenagers .

The exchange was part of a fragile deal brokered between Israel and Hamas, with Egypt and Qatar serving as mediators. Under the terms of the agreement, Israel paused its assault on Gaza. Now the sides have agreed to extend the pause for two more days as more hostages and prisoners are exchanged.

Claire Parker is The Washington Post’s Cairo bureau chief reporting from Israel. She tells us what it took for this deal to take shape – and what could happen next.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here .