Israel-Hamas ceasefire latest: Gaza airstrikes continue as family killed hours ahead of truce deal
Airstrikes have continued in Gaza just hours ahead of a ceasefire truce, with a family killed inside the al-Mawasi “humanitarian zone” and another killed near Khan Younis.
On Saturday morning, rocket sirens sounded in Tel Aviv after a missile was launched from Yemen, with the IDF confirming it had been intercepted by Israel’s Air Force.
Under the terms of the deal, Israel are expected to release 737 prisoners and detainees as part of the first phase of a long-awaited truce which begins on Sunday.
“The government approves” the “release (of) 737 prisoners and detainees” currently in the custody of the prison service, the ministry said in a statement.
The deal is set to come into effect at 8.30am local time (6.30am GMT) on Sunday, the Qatari foreign ministry spokesman said.
Israel’s government voted in favour of the truce after the country’s security cabinet, chaired by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, agreed to the ceasefire and hostage deal earlier on Friday. The vote is believed to have been 24 in favour and eight against early on Saturday morning local time.
The ceasefire was announced on Wednesday but faced last-minute hurdles after Mr Netanyahu accused Hamas of “reneging” on parts of the deal.
It was not clear what caused the delay, but it was reported Hamas tried to add some of its members to the list of Palestinian prisoners that would be released under the exchange.
