The Cabinet of Israel has approved a four-day ceasefire agreement with Hamas, which also includes the release of about 50 hostages.
According to Reuters, Hamas will release the hostages in exchange for the freedom of 150 women and children from Israeli jails.
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In a statement, the Israeli government hinted that the ceasefire would go longer than the initial four days.
It said that for every 10 hostages freed, the lull would be extended by one more day.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel will begin its offensive against Hamas when the ceasefire expires ahead of the cabinet vote on Wednesday morning.
The statement did not address the release of Palestinian inmates from Israeli prisons, despite the fact that this is a crucial component of the agreement.
It is unclear when the truce would go into effect, and the hostages could be freed starting Thursday.
Approximately 240 people have been taken hostage by Hamas since the attack on October 7.
After learning that the Israeli government had accepted an agreement, Anat Moshe Shoshany, whose grandmother was abducted from kibbutz Nir-Oz on the back of a moped, said it gave her “so much hope.”
She told CNN: “Even if my grandmother won’t be among those people, and obviously I hope she will be, but even if she’s not, I just can’t wait to see the picture of the children, the innocent people going out from there after so many days, so many long days that we’re waiting for them.”
She said people were “fighting for this fight for a very long time”.
“Because we can’t stand to fill all our hopes up and to disappoint – but I really do hope to see someone walking out of there. I think it will fill us with hope for others.”
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