Gaza ceasefire agreement reached

Qatar’s PM announced in a press conference that Israel and Hamas had reached a comprehensive three-phase agreement on a ceasefire and captives-for-prisoners swap

January 15, 2025 by Aseel Saleh
Israeli forces in Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, one of the most fiercely targeted areas. Photo: IDF Spokesperson / Wikimedia Commons

The long awaited ceasefire and captives-for-prisoners swap deal was announced on Wednesday, January 15, in a press conference held by Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. The agreement puts an end to one of the worst genocides in modern history, during which Israel mercilessly massacred tens of thousands of Palestinians, and devastated the infrastructure of the besieged Gaza strip. The Israeli genocide has spilled over to other parts of the West Asia region, claiming the lives of thousands of civilians, in Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen.

The genocide marked one of the most crucial eras of the century-long struggle of the Palestinian people for liberation. The deal outlines an end to fighting between Hamas and Israel and will take place during three six-week long phases, during which the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) will completely withdraw from Gaza including the Netzarim and Salah Ad-Din (Philadelphi) corridor in a gradual manner. Israel’s withdrawal from both corridors was one of the main points of disagreement throughout one year and three months of negotiations.

Regarding the captives-for-prisoners swap part of the deal, around 30 Israeli captives held in Gaza will be released in return for 1500 to 2000 Palestinian prisoners, though the official number has not been finalized. This includes detainees sentenced to life in prison. The captives and prisoners from both sides will be released in batches.

Before the deal was reached on Wednesday, the negotiations between the parties went through on and off periods, with recriminations of stalemating the talks by both sides, and new conditions being set by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu each time the agreement was close to being reached.

Since October 7, a temporary ceasefire deal was reached only once, on November 24, 2023, lasting for 6 days. The deal included the release of 50 Israeli captives in return of 150 Palestinian prisoners. However, the ceasefire was violated by Israel, as it continued to launch airstrikes on Gaza and re-arrested a number of the Palestinian prisoners freed in the deal in subsequent weeks and months.

Background and timeline of events

Israel’s genocide in Gaza started in the aftermath of the attack launched on October 7, 2023 by Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, against illegal Israeli settlements in the area surrounding the Gaza strip, known as Gaza envelope settlements.

Al-Qassam captured more than 250 people, mostly Israelis and some foreign workers, in the attack intending to exert pressure on the Israeli government for a swap deal that would guarantee the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The October 7 attack, which the Al-Qassam Brigades called “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”, was also carried out in retaliation for decades of Israeli oppression against Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, which reached its peak in 2023.

Israel’s prolonged blockade and recurrent assaults on the Gaza Strip

Since Hamas took over governance of Gaza in 2007, Israel and its allies have imposed a stifling blockade on the enclave. As part of the blockade, Israel completely restricted the movement of goods and people in and out of the Gaza Strip, by controlling Gaza’s airspace, waterways, land border crossings, alongside key economic elements, and population registry.

The blockade of Gaza, which was internationally denounced for being an illegal action that constitutes collective punishment, kept the population of over two million Palestinians in what was often referred to as an “open air prison”, where they suffered from severe isolation and impoverishment.

In addition to the inhumane blockade, Israel launched recurrent aggressions on the besieged enclave. In 2008, Israel launched a 22-day war in Gaza, killing 1,440 Palestinians, mainly civilians.

Israel launched another attack in 2012 which lasted eight days, leaving 163 Palestinians killed. Two years later, Israel launched a 50-day aggression on Gaza, which claimed the lives of 2,251 Palestinians.

In a bid to break the strangling siege, tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza marched towards the Gaza border in the peaceful Great March of Return from 2018-2019 on a weekly basis. Although the protests were peaceful, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) cracked down on Palestinian protesters violently, killing 220 people. In 2021, Israel launched an 11-day aggression on the Gaza strip, killing at least 256 Palestinians.

Israeli attacks in the West Bank reached new heights in 2023, prior to October 7

The year which preceded the October 7 attacks, was one which saw a notable uptick in Israeli crimes against Palestinians. Israeli occupation authorities escalated its crimes against Palestinian prisoners, violently attacked worshippers in Al-Aqsa mosque and humiliated Palestinian women by undressing them during IOF’s home raids. Hamas attributed these flagrant violations as major triggers that led to launching “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”.