The Israeli military announced on Friday that a cease-fire had taken effect at noon, with its soldiers strategically repositioning themselves within Gaza. This move is a significant step that mediators hope will finally bring an end to the two-year conflict.
In a related development, Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset, is reportedly preparing for a visit from President Trump on Monday, following an invitation extended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week.
The cease-fire agreement, finalized between Israel and Hamas early Friday morning, outlines that Hamas will release the remaining hostages held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Concurrently, Israeli troops are expected to undertake a partial withdrawal.
Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s Mideast envoy, confirmed that the U.S. military verified the Israeli withdrawal to the agreed-upon line inside Gaza. This verification initiated a critical 72-hour window during which Hamas is mandated to hand over the remaining hostages.
Speaking in a recorded statement on Friday, Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated that the cease-fire deal would enable Israel to facilitate the return of the remaining hostages while allowing its forces to maintain their presence in Gaza.
Netanyahu also stressed that Israel would not compromise on its other demands, which include Hamas laying down its weapons and the demilitarization of Gaza. Hamas, however, views disarmament as equivalent to surrender, considering armed resistance a legitimate form of struggle against Israeli control over Palestinian territories.
“If this is achieved the easy way, so much the better. If not, it will be done the hard way,” Mr. Netanyahu asserted.
Friday saw thousands of people traversing the coastal road in Gaza on foot, making their way from the southern part of the enclave to the north. Mousa Rajab, a 22-year-old nursing student, shared that he and his cousin promptly began their walk to Gaza City upon hearing about the cease-fire.
“We just want to see if our homes are still standing,” Mr. Rajab explained. “We heard ours was partly damaged, but we have to see it with our own eyes.”
Despite previous cease-fires in Gaza often collapsing back into renewed conflict, Mr. Rajab held an optimistic view that this war might genuinely be over this time. “Everything still feels uncertain,” he admitted. “Will they tell us to leave again? I hope not. I just want this to be the last time we walk this road.”
Avichay Adraee, a military spokesman, announced that the Israeli military would permit Palestinians in southern Gaza to use major roads for travel to the north. However, he warned the public not to approach several areas across Gaza where Israeli troops would remain active, labeling these places as “extremely dangerous.”
On Thursday night, the Israeli military reported striking a site in northern Gaza, which it claimed was being utilized by Hamas fighters who “posed an immediate threat” to Israeli troops.
Gaza’s Civil Defense emergency rescue service stated that the targeted site was a residential building, and it was believed that dozens of people were inside at the time of the strike.
According to a government resolution released by Mr. Netanyahu’s office on Friday, the Israeli military is required to move to new deployment lines inside Gaza by early Saturday. Following this, Hamas would have a 72-hour window to return all remaining hostages, including the bodies of those who have died.
The resolution also specified that Israel had authorized the release of 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in Israel, as well as 1,722 Gazans detained during the war who were not involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, including 22 individuals under the age of 18.
On Friday, the Israeli government issued a list of the prisoners slated for release, which included many convicted of staging attacks against Israelis. Notably, several high-profile prisoners whose release analysts had anticipated Hamas would seek were not on the list.
A Hamas office responsible for prisoners’ affairs stated on Friday that the list was not yet fully agreed upon or finalized.
Johnatan Reiss contributed reporting.