GAZA (Palestine Foundation Information Center) Spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades Abu Obeida said that an Israeli strike had hit a place where one of the Israeli captives to be freed “in the first stage of the ceasefire deal was located.”
“Any aggression and shelling at this stage by the enemy could turn the freedom of a captive into a tragedy,” Abu Obeida said on Telegram, referring to the dozens of Israeli captives held in Gaza since the October 7, 2023.
Without offering details, Abu Obeida, spokesman for the armed wing, said an Israeli strike had hit a place where one of the women to be freed “in the first stage of the ceasefire deal was located.”
Earlier Wednesday, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani announced that Israel and Hamas have reached an agreement to halt the 15-month war in Gaza and exchange Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons.
He said the ceasefire would take effect on Sunday, January 19.
The agreement will be implemented over three stages, Sheikh Mohammed said. In an initial six-week phase, Israeli forces would gradually withdraw from central Gaza and Palestinians would be allowed to return to their homes in northern Gaza.
Hamas would release 33 Israeli captives over those six weeks, including all female soldiers and civilians, children and the elderly, he said.
Talks on the second phase would begin by the 16th day of the first phase, and are expected to include the release of the remaining captives and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, the Reuters news agency reported, citing an official briefing on the negotiations.
A third phase was expected to include the return of dead bodies and the start of reconstruction in Gaza, Reuters reported.
The announcement came as the Israeli army continued its deadly attacks across the Gaza Strip.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Thursday that Israeli attacks since the start of the war have killed at least 46,788 Palestinians, up by 81 from a day earlier. The number of people wounded has also risen to at least 110,453 people, it said.
