Nov. 22: Israel’s government has approved Qatar-mediated deal for a four-day truce in Gaza and release of 50 captives held in the enclave. Hamas has confirmed a temporary ceasefire has been reached, adding that 150 Palestinian women and children held in Israeli jails will be freed as part of the deal, as per Al Jazeera report.
“Based on our responsibility towards our patient and steadfast Palestinian people, and our tireless endeavor to strengthen the steadfastness of our heroic people in our proud Gaza, to provide relief and heal their wounds, and to consolidate the will of our victorious resistance on the seventh of October in the face of the Zionist enemy,” official statement released by Hamas said.
“After difficult and complex negotiations for many days, we announce, with the help and success of God Almighty, that we have reached a humanitarian truce agreement (temporary ceasefire) for a period of four days, thanks to persistent and appreciated Qatari and Egyptian efforts, it said.
Accordingly, the terms set out for the ceasefire are:
- A ceasefire on both sides, a cessation of all military actions by occupation forces in all areas of the Gaza Strip, and a cessation of the movement of its military vehicles penetrating into the Gaza Strip.
- The entry of hundreds of trucks of humanitarian, relief, medical and fuel aid into all areas of the Gaza Strip, without exception, in the north and south.
- The release of 50 women and children of the occupation’s detainees, all under the age of 19 years, in exchange for the release of 150 women and children of our people from the occupation’s prisons under the age of 19 years, in order of time imprisoned.
- Stopping all occupation air traffic in the south for four days.
- Stopping all occupation air traffic in the North for 6 hours a day, from 10:00 AM until 4:00 PM.
- During the truce period, the occupation is committed not to attack or arrest anyone in all areas of the Gaza Strip.
- Ensuring freedom of movement of people (from north to south) along Salah El-Din Street.
“The terms of this agreement were formulated in accordance with the vision of the resistance and its determinants, which aim to serve our people and strengthen their steadfastness in the face of aggression, and it was always mindful of their sacrifices, suffering and concerns, and it conducted these negotiations from a position of steadfastness and strength in the field, despite the occupation’s attempts to prolong and procrastinate the negotiations,” the Hamas statement further said.
“While we announce the arrival of a truce agreement, we affirm that our hands will remain on the trigger, and our victorious battalions will remain on the lookout to defend our people and defeat the occupation and aggression,” the statement emphasised.
“We promise our people that we will remain loyal to their blood, their sacrifices, their patience, their bond, and their aspirations for liberation, freedom, the restoration of rights, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, God willing,” concludes the Hamas statement.
