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Israel has confirmed that a ceasefire agreement has been reached in Gaza after a last-minute crisis was resolved in talks with Hamas, and Benjamin Netanyahu's government is set to vote on the agreement on Friday.
The US-led mediators announced on Wednesday that the two parties had agreed to a multi-stage agreement to stop the 15-month-old war and release the 98 hostages still being held by the Palestinian armed group.
But official approval by Israel was delayed amid disagreements with Hamas over which Palestinian prisoners should be released Political tensions Inside Netanyahu's government.
According to a person familiar with the Israeli government's deliberations, the Cabinet is now expected to approve the deal on Friday, and the full cabinet is scheduled to meet and vote on the Saturday evening after Saturday.
Under the law, the Israeli public has the right to appeal to the Supreme Court against the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons that form part of the deal — making it “likely,” the person added, that implementation of the deal will only begin on Monday.
The mediators were previously confident that the ceasefire would go into effect, and the first three Israeli hostages would be released by midday on Sunday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also trying to manage a political crisis brewing at home, with far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announcing on Thursday evening that he and his Jewish Power party would withdraw from the ruling coalition if something “reckless” happens. The deal was approved.
Ben Gvir and his ultra-nationalist ally, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, repeatedly threatened to leave Netanyahu's government if it accepted an agreement to end the war.
The departure of the “Jewish Power” party would give the prime minister's coalition a two-seat majority in the Israeli parliament. It would also increase pressure on Smotrich's Religious Zionism party to follow suit and withdraw.
While Ben Gvir and Smotrich are not believed to have enough support in the cabinet to thwart approval of the deal, if they both withdraw their far-right parties from the government, they will lose their parliamentary majority. The political system in Israel does not prevent the formation of a minority government, and the opposition parties have said that they are ready to support Netanyahu's coalition if necessary.
But the loss of his two allies would shake Netanyahu's grip on power and could lead to early elections.
