“We will struggle with this failure for the rest of our lives,” the couple said in a statement. “But today we celebrate the impending reunion of the 98 remaining hostages with their loved ones, for whom we have worked tirelessly and so many of whom have become like family to us during this 467-day fight.”

The total 98 Israeli hostages include four who were captured before the October 7 attacks, as well as those who are believed to have died in Gaza since then.

Both outgoing US President Joe Biden and new President Donald Trump tried to claim recognition for the ceasefire agreement announced last night.

Trump’s impending return to the White House may have been the deciding factor in forcing Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu to confirm a long-awaited agreement. While Trump has publicly threatened Hamas in the run-up to his second term, reports suggest that his influence on the negotiations was “the first time that real pressure was put on the Israeli side to accept an agreement” (Gabrielle Weiniger writes) .

The relatives of the hostages held in Gaza also expressed relief after months of campaigning for their release.

However, some now have to wait another few days or weeks to be reunited with their surviving relatives.

The family of Emily Damari, a British-Israeli citizen, hopes she could be among the 33 hostages released in the first phase.

Her mother Mandy shared photos of football fans at a game on Wednesday night bearing messages of support for her daughter, a Tottenham Hotspur fan.

“You came together to say, ‘Bring her home.’ Thank you,” she wrote on X.

In the Gaza Strip, those left behind and displaced by the war have expressed hope and relief at a possible end to the fighting.

Najiya Awda, 57, fled her home in eastern Gaza to the south of the territory, where many of the nearly two million refugees have sought refuge.

“I’m so happy, but I’m still scared. I was forced to leave my home more than seven times. I can’t wait to get back to my city and my house,” she told The Times last night.

“Thank God, we feel a little safer now. We no longer move our tents from one place to another. Finally I will see my neighbors and friends again. My joy is so great that I feel like I could fly.

“Today I left my tent to celebrate with the people of Gaza. For the first time in a long time, we feel hope to rebuild our lives and find peace again.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also claimed that the proposed ceasefire in Gaza represented a “major victory” for the Palestinian resistance.

“The end of the war and the enforcement of a ceasefire against the Zionist regime (Israel) is a clear and major victory for Palestine and a major defeat for the Zionist regime,” the IRGC said in a statement.

On

Western officials, including White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, said the war between Israel and the Iran-backed “axis of resistance” had significantly weakened Tehran.

IRGC commander Hossein Salami boasted last week that Iran’s enemies were taking “false joy” over recent developments in the region, including the overthrow of President Assad’s regime in Syria. He claimed that Tehran’s missile forces were stronger than ever.

A senior Hamas leader claimed Israel had failed to achieve its goals and was defeated in Gaza, as he called the possible ceasefire and hostage-taking deal a “historic moment.”

“Our people have thwarted the declared and hidden goals of the occupation,” Khalil al-Hayya told the German Press Agency. “Today we prove that the occupation will never defeat our people and their resistance.”

He praised the Hamas-led massacres of around 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza, as a “military achievement” and “a source of pride for our people.”

The deputy chairman of Hamas’ political bureau also said the group would continue to pursue the destruction of Israel and praised its allies Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi rebels in Yemen for also attacking Israel.

“Our enemy will never see a moment of weakness from us,” he added.

As people in Gaza and Israel celebrated the announcement, the Israeli military escalated attacks, civil emergency services and residents said.

Heavy Israeli bombing, particularly in Gaza City, killed 32 people late Wednesday, medics said. Attacks continued early Thursday, destroying homes in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip and the northern Gaza Strip, residents said.

Israel’s military said Gaza militants fired a rocket at Israel this morning; There were no casualties.

Hamas has backed away from an earlier ceasefire agreement and is trying to dictate which Palestinian prisoners will be released, the Israeli prime minister’s office said overnight.

Israel has a veto over the release of “mass murderers who are symbols of terror,” the statement said.

The proposed ceasefire agreement calls for at least 33 hostages, including women, children and men over 50, to be released in the coming weeks in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

In a possible second phase, between 30 and 40 male hostages would be released in exchange for additional Palestinian prisoners.

The released Palestinians will include many people convicted of terrorist crimes, including murder, as well as women and children.

Netanyahu’s statement, released around 3:30 a.m. local time, said Hamas “demands to determine the identity of these killers” and accused the militant group of wanting to “deviate from what was agreed in the agreement.”

Israel’s cabinet will vote to approve the ceasefire agreement today after the agreement was announced by the Qatari prime minister last night.

Any deal must be approved by Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet and then his government.

Hardline Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir rejects any concessions to Hamas and has previously threatened to resign if the deal is accepted.

However, a majority of ministers are expected to support the phased ceasefire agreement, which calls for a cessation of fighting and the gradual release of hostages.