Israel, Hamas extend ceasefire agreement

Israel, Hamas gia hạn thỏa thuận ngừng bắn - 1 — People cheered as Israeli helicopters brought hostages back from Gaza (Photo: AP).

"The two sides (Israel and Hamas) have reached an agreement to extend the ceasefire for two more days in the Gaza Strip," a Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman said on social media account X on November 27.

Hamas also issued a statement confirming the extension of the ceasefire and acknowledging the mediation efforts of Qatar and Egypt.

"I hope we can move towards ending this conflict," said Ghazi Hamad, a senior Hamas member.

Mark Regev, a senior adviser to the Israeli Prime Minister , confirmed the extension of the ceasefire. The official also stressed that the agreement will only take effect after Hamas completes the release of hostages on November 27.

Mr. Regev said that the hostages released in the next two days will also be women and children. He thanked US President Joe Biden for his support in helping the two sides reach an agreement.

"We will not stop until all hostages are freed," the senior adviser to the Israeli Prime Minister stressed.

No details of the renewed deal were immediately available, but Diaa Rashwan, an Egyptian official, said the deal could include the release of 20 Israeli hostages and 60 Palestinian prisoners.

Last week, through Qatar's mediation, Israel and Hamas reached a temporary four-day ceasefire that allowed the release of at least 50 hostages, mostly women and children, in Gaza.

In return, Israel agreed to release Palestinian women and children held in Israeli jails. The ceasefire also allowed humanitarian aid convoys to enter Gaza.

On November 27, the last day of the original ceasefire agreement, the Israeli military said Hamas had released 11 hostages, including three French, two German and six Argentinian. In return, Israel released 33 Palestinian prisoners.

Thus, during the 4-day ceasefire, Hamas released 69 hostages. Meanwhile, Israel released 150 Palestinian prisoners held in this country.

Before this hostage exchange, Israel said that Hamas was still holding 184 hostages, including 14 foreigners and 80 Israeli citizens with dual nationality.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that the country's military would launch more powerful attacks when the ceasefire expires. "When fighting resumes, we will mobilize more forces and attack the entire Gaza Strip," he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also previously announced that Tel Aviv wants to extend the ceasefire with Hamas but can still concentrate all its forces on attacking Palestinian armed forces after the end of the truce.

The Israel-Hamas conflict flared up again on October 7 after more than two years of silence. The fighting has killed more than 1,200 people in Israel and about 16,000 people in the Gaza Strip.

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