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A Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal was announced in Qatar and Washington yesterday, with President Joe Biden and his incoming replacement Donald Trump both seemingly keen to take credit for the breakthrough.
It is not quite signed and sealed yet − in fact, a last-minute delay of a key Israeli vote on the package is holding up matters amid claim and counterclaim with Hamas − but expectations are that the deal will get the final nod through.
But what is in the deal, and what does it mean for all parties concerned? For answers, The Conversation turned to Asher Kaufman, an expert on Israeli history and professor of peace studies at the University of Notre Dame.
Kaufman explains that there are to be three phases to the package. The initial hostage release of 33 Israelis in return for Palestinian prisoners will be followed by a second wave involving remaining captives in Gaza. Finally, parties will turn to postwar Gaza and its governance, and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops. And it is here that barriers remain. Kaufman writes that members of the Israeli government will be “loath to agree to any measures that would lead to a handing over of governance and security in the enclave to Palestinians.”
He continues: “Throughout the conflict, the Israel government has made it clear that it envisions no role for Hamas in a post-conflict Gaza. But Hamas’ main rival, the Palestinian Authority, has little credibility among Gaza’s residents. It leaves a gaping question of who will govern in Gaza.”
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Demonstrators in Tel Aviv
call on the Israeli government to secure the release of the hostages during a Jan. 15, 2025, protest.
Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images)
Asher Kaufman, University of Notre Dame
Three-phased deal will start with the release of 33 hostages held by Hamas since Oct. 7, 2023. If fully implemented, the agreement will see the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian enclave.
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