EARLIER UPDATES BELOW – REFRESH THIS LAGE FOR LATEST UPDATES

2:01PM ET: Qatar’s prime minister announces a hostage and ceasefire deal has been reached and will come into effect on Sunday.

2:00PM ET: President Biden releases statement on Israel Hamas ceasefire agreement

1:44PM ET: Housing Minister Yitzchak Goldknopf, leader of the United Torah Judaism party, expressed support for the hostage deal with Hamas, emphasizing that “פיקוח נפש דוחה את כל התורה כולה.”

1:32PM ET: Egyptian state media reports that efforts are underway to facilitate the opening of the Rafah border crossing for international humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. According to an Egyptian security official, the country is gearing up to send the maximum possible amount of supplies to the Gaza Strip.

1:01PM ET: Channel 12 reports new unconfirmed details about the proposed deal between Israel and Hamas, outlining the phased release of 33 hostages over a 42-day period. According to the report, the hostages to be freed first will include female civilians, followed by female soldiers, men over the age of 50, and those who are infirm.

Israel reportedly insisted that those hostages confirmed to be alive must be released first. Intelligence suggests that most of the 33 hostages are believed to be alive. The release schedule indicates that the first three hostages will be freed on the initial day of the deal’s implementation, with four more to follow on the seventh day. Subsequent releases will involve three hostages every seven days, culminating with the release of the final 14 in the last week of the phase.

In exchange, Israel is set to release over 1,000 Palestinian security prisoners, including at least 250 individuals described as having “blood on their hands.” Among those to be freed are prisoners captured in Gaza following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. However, the report states that no individuals directly involved in the massacre will be released as part of the agreement.

12:58PM ET: The Prime Minister’s Office, this evening (Wednesday, 15 January 2025) [translated from Hebrew]:

Due to the strong insistence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hamas folded on its last-minute demand to change the deployment of IDF forces in the Philadelphi Corridor. However, several items in the framework have yet to be finalized; we hope that the details will be finalized tonight.

12:52PM ET: Thousands of Gazans celebrate as news spread that a ceasefire and hostage release deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas, aimed at releasing the 94 hostages abducted by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, invasion and massacre in southern Israel, and ending more than 15 months of war in the Palestinian enclave, sparked by the same attack.

AFP journalists in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah and other areas witnessed people gathering in groups, hugging and taking photos with their mobile phones to mark the announcement.

12:42 PM ET: Trump releases a new statement on the hostage deal:

“This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November, as it signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies. I am thrilled American and Israeli hostages will be returning home to be reunited with their families and loved ones.

With this deal in place, my National Security team, through the efforts of Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will continue to work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven. We will continue promoting PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH throughout the region, as we build upon the momentum of this ceasefire to further expand the Historic Abraham Accords. This is only the beginning of great things to come for America, and indeed, the World!

We have achieved so much without even being in the White House. Just imagine all of the wonderful things that will happen when I return to the White House, and my Administration is fully confirmed, so they can secure more Victories for the United States!”

12:33PM ET: According to reports, the initial stage of the agreement includes the following measures:

• The IDF will withdraw to positions within 700 meters (approximately 2,300 feet) inside Gaza.
• Israel will release around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 terrorists serving life sentences.
• Palestinian factions will release 33 Israeli hostages.
• Injured individuals in Gaza will be permitted to travel abroad for medical treatment.
• The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt will be opened seven days after the first stage begins.
• Israeli forces will initiate a pullback from the Philadelphi Corridor along Gaza’s border with Egypt, with plans for a full withdrawal in subsequent stages.

12:29PM ET: President Isaac Herzog is holding discussions in Jerusalem with Mirjana Spoljaric, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, to address arrangements for an impending hostage release agreement, according to his office.

12:27PM ET: Hamas official Basem Naim has informed reporters that the group has agreed to a deal with Israel involving a ceasefire and the release of hostages.

12:21PM ET: US, Qatar, and Egypt will shortly issue a joint statement announcing the deal.

12:20PM ET: US President-elect Donald Trump becomes the first person to publicly confirm, on-record, that a hostage release and ceasefire deal has been reached.

“WE HAVE A DEAL FOR THE HOSTAGES IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THEY WILL BE RELEASED SHORTLY. THANK YOU!” Trump writes on Truth Social.

11:56PM ET: A senior U.S. official has confirmed that an agreement has been finalized for a hostage release and ceasefire.

This has been confirmed by numerous officials on both sides. An announcement is expected this evening.

Hamas has announced that it has officially responded to the proposed ceasefire and hostage release agreement. In a statement, the group’s political leadership in Doha described its response as “responsible” but did not specify whether the deal was accepted or rejected.

11:55AM ET: Hamas told Al-Jazeera on Wednesday that their delegation had conveyed its approval of the ceasefire agreement to Egypt and Qatar.

11:41AM ET: The Palestinian Civil Defence has called on residents to stay away from areas in Gaza with an IDF presence until the details of the possible ceasefire are known and implemented.

“To our beloved Palestinian people in Gaza, for your own safety – amid talks of a looming ceasefire in the Gaza Strip – we warn you against approaching areas where the Israeli occupation forces are present,” Mahmoud Basal, the agency’s spokesperson, said in a statement.

11:10AM ET: A senior political source reports that Israel’s negotiating team in Qatar has been confronted with last-minute demands from Hamas concerning the Philadelphi Corridor, a key strategic zone along the Gaza-Egypt border.

The source stated that these demands contradict the maps previously approved by Israel’s cabinet and U.S. mediators during the negotiations. Israel remains firmly opposed to any modifications to the agreed-upon maps, according to the official.

As per the reported terms of the deal, Israel is to retain control over the Philadelphi Corridor during the initial phase of the agreement, although its military presence may be reduced.

Meanwhile, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani is reportedly meeting with Hamas representatives in a last-ditch effort to finalize the ceasefire and hostage release agreement, a source involved in the talks told Reuters.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)