The ceasefire between the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip will come into force on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. local time (7:30 a.m. in Paris), Majed al-Ansari, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, said this Saturday, January 18. , mediating country. The ceasefire agreement, announced Wednesday by Qatar and the United States, another mediating country, provides in an initial six-week phase for the release of 33 hostages held in the Gaza Strip since the unprecedented attack of Hamas on Israeli soil on October 7, 2023.
Information to remember
⇒ The truce between Israel and Hamas will begin on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. (local time)
⇒ Israel will release 737 prisoners in a first phase
⇒ Two Franco-Israelis appear on the list of the first hostages freed by Hamas
Truce between Israel and Hamas begins Sunday morning
The Israeli government gave its final green light this Saturday to the ceasefire agreement with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, paving the way for the entry into force this Sunday of a truce accompanied by the release of the first Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian detainees.
Announced on Wednesday by Qatar and the United States, this agreement aims to lead to “a definitive end to the war” which has caused tens of thousands of deaths in more than 15 months in the devastated Palestinian territory, according to the Prime Minister of Qatar, Mohammed ben Abdelrahmane Al-Thani.
But while waiting for the start of the truce, set for the eve of the inauguration of the elected American president, Donald Trump, the Israeli army continued its airstrikes on the Palestinian territory, killing more than 100 people since Wednesday, according to emergency services.
Israel to release 737 prisoners in first phase
Israel to release 737 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the return of the first Israeli hostages during the first phase of the truce agreement in the Gaza Strip approved on Saturday by the Israeli government, the Justice Ministry announced. Among the prisoners expected to be released is Zakaria Zubeidi, responsible for several attacks against Israeli civilians and former leader of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed wing of the Fatah party, who escaped from prison Israeli in 2021.
Yemen’s Houthis continue to defy Israel
Having become “indispensable” to Iran after the hard blows inflicted on its Palestinian and Lebanese allies, the Houthi rebels in Yemen say they want to maintain pressure on Israel despite the truce agreement in the Gaza Strip. Since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Palestinian territory, the Houthis have fired dozens of missiles and drones towards Israel and targeted ships they believe are linked to it in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Israel. ‘Aden.
Claiming to act in support of the Palestinians, they remain difficult to counter despite repeated strikes carried out by Israel, the United States and sometimes the United Kingdom against their positions. Coming from northern Yemen, the Houthis ousted the Yemeni government from Sanaa in 2014 and have since seized large swathes of the territory, with the support of Tehran, Israel’s sworn enemy.
Two Franco-Israelis appear on the list of the first hostages freed by Hamas
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday on of Gaza. “We remain tirelessly mobilized so that their families can find them,” he said. The first release of hostages, held for more than 15 months, should take place this Sunday, according to the services of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The French president will speak “very soon” with the families of these two Franco-Israeli hostages, his entourage said. He will express to them “his deep relief following the announcement of their release” and will tell them “that they can always count on France”, indicated the French embassy in Tel Aviv.
Iranians and Israelis banned from entering Syria
Iranians and Israelis have been banned from entering Syria, now governed by a new administration, an airport source told AFP. International flights resumed on January 7 at Damascus’ main airport, almost a month after an Islamist-dominated coalition ousted Bashar al-Assad from power following a lightning offensive. Only a few airlines have resumed or announced that they will resume flights to Syria.
An airport source in Damascus told AFP on condition of anonymity on Thursday that airport authorities had asked airlines operating in Syria not to allow Israelis and Iranians to board flights to the country. Israeli nationals have long been barred from entering the country, as Syria and Israel are technically at war and have no diplomatic ties.
The Palestinian Authority is ready to “fully assume its responsibilities” in Gaza
The Palestinian Authority is ready to “fully assume its responsibilities” in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday, in his first official reaction to Wednesday’s announcement of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. “The Palestinian government, under the leadership of President Abbas, has completed all preparations to fully assume its responsibilities in the Gaza Strip,” underlines a statement from the Palestinian presidency, reaffirming “the legal and political authority of the State of Palestine in this territory.
Among these responsibilities, the presidency cited in particular the return of displaced people, the provision of basic services, the management of crossing points and the reconstruction of the territory devastated by more than 15 months of war.