Israel and Hamas agreed to a hostage deal Wednesday local time.
What we know about the deal: The agreement involves Hamas releasing 50 hostages who were taken Oct. 7, and requires Israel to release 150 Palestinian women and children who are currently being held in Israeli prisons, CBS News reported. Hamas said hostages would be released in a span of four days, and Israel agreed to cease fighting on those days.
The deal will go into force Thursday local time, allowing 24 hours to be finalized.
“The release of every additional ten hostages will result in one additional day in the pause,” a statement from Hamas said, per CBS News.
A pause in fighting will allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza
The pause will also allow the entry of “a larger number of humanitarian convoys and relief aid, including fuel designated for humanitarian needs,” Qatar, which is mediating the deal, said in a statement, per CNN.
Israel made it known that it would just be a pause in fighting and would start back up its air and ground campaign “to complete the eradication of Hamas” once the four-day hostage release ends, per CNN.
By pausing the conflict, it marks the longest break in fighting since the Oct. 7 attacks, in which Hamas took close to 240 people hostage, a majority of them civilians.
“The Israeli government is committed to bringing all the hostages home,” Israel’s government statement said, per The New York Times.
Reports say that at least 200 Palestinians are currently being held in Israeli prisons, a majority of them being teenage boys, according to the Times. Some were being held before the Oct. 7 attacks, and some were taken after — Palestinian government believes around 700 people who are missing are currently being held in Israeli prisons.