Temporary cease-fire in Gaza, hostage release put off until Friday

By WAFAA SHURAFA and KAREEM CHEHAYEB, The Associated Press

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — An agreement for a four-day cease-fire in Gaza and the release of dozens of hostages held by militants and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel appeared to have hit a last-minute snag. A senior Israeli official said it would not take effect until Friday, a day later than originally announced.

The diplomatic breakthrough promised some relief for the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza who have endured weeks of Israeli bombardment, as well as families in Israel fearful for the fate of their loved ones taken captive during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war.

Israel’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, announced the delay late Wednesday, without providing a reason. Negotiators were still “working to create the appropriate conditions” for the cease-fire and swap, according to Majed al-Ansari, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Qatar, which played a key role in mediating with Hamas.

The Persian Gulf nation said early Thursday that a new time for the agreement to go into force would be announced “in the coming hours.” It was originally set to begin Thursday morning. The U.S. and Egypt also helped negotiate the deal.

RISING TOLL IN GAZA

The Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza, meanwhile, resumed its detailed count of Palestinian casualties from the war, saying more than 13,300 have been killed.

The figures do not include updated numbers from hospitals in the north, where services and communication largely broke down earlier this month, and the ministry says some 6,000 people have been reported missing and are feared to be buried under rubble.

The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and militants in its death tolls. Israel says it has killed thousands of Hamas fighters, though it has presented no evidence for its count.

The ministry stopped publishing casualty counts as of Nov. 11, saying it had lost the ability to do so because of the collapse of the health sector in the north.

’T END WAR

The truce agreement had raised hopes of eventually winding down the war, which has leveled vast swaths of Gaza, fueled a surge of violence in the occupied West Bank, and stirred fears of a wider conflagration across the Middle East.

Air raid sirens sounded across northern Israel on Thursday as Hezbollah said it had fired 48 Katyusha rockets from southern Lebanon. The barrage came after an Israeli strike killed five Hezbollah fighters, including the son of the head of the group’s parliamentary bloc.

The Israeli military said it was striking the sources of the launches. Israel and Hezbollah, which fought a monthlong war in 2006, have repeatedly traded fire across the border since the war in Gaza broke out.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war against Hamas after the truce expires, with the goal of destroying the group’s military capabilities, ending its 16-year rule in Gaza and returning all of the estimated 240 captives held in Gaza by Hamas and other groups.