Israel has agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire with Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, Al Jazeera reported on Thursday evening. The news channel said that Israeli officials have updated the Egyptian mediator brokering the negotiations that it agrees to end its military operation.
Hamas officials also indicated to Arab media that a ceasefire with Israel is expected to take effect on Friday. The terrorist group further said that Hamas initially refused a ceasefire in which the organization stops firing rockets before the IDF ceases attacks.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to convene the security cabinet at 7 p.m. on Thursday to discuss the terms for a ceasefire.
The news came after Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki accused Israel of committing war crimes and deliberately massacring children in their sleep at the United Nations in News York. Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan walked out of the General Assembly meeting in protest of the minister’s charged statements.
Qatar-based Al Jazeera television reported that U.N. Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland was meeting Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Qatar. A diplomatic source said Wennesland was in the Gulf nation as part of intensified U.N. efforts to restore calm in Gaza and Israel.
Israel had a relatively quiet night on Wednesday without rocket sirens from about 1 a.m. until Thursday morning. The quiet came as Israel and Hamas were said to be close to a possible ceasefire that could go into effect as soon as Thursday evening or Friday night.
A senior Hamas official told CNN on Wednesday night that he expects a ceasefire agreement to be reached within the next couple of days, Israeli media reported.
“I think ceasefire mediation will work,” deputy head of the Hamas political branch Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook said. “The equation was clear – if they escalate we escalate. If they stop firing at Gaza we’ll stop firing at Tel Aviv. Israel’s actions in Jerusalem and Sheikh Jarrah have caused the al-Aqsa Brigades to enter the campaign,” he said. “Any negotiations for a ceasefire must address that.”
Despite the claim, Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen said that Israel was determined to continue the operation for as long as it was needed to restore security to the State of Israel.
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“We will end the operation when we feel we have achieved our goals,” Cohen told Kan Radio.
During a Wednesday phone call between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden said he “expected a significant de-escalation on the path to a ceasefire.” Netanyahu told Biden that the operation will continue until Israeli citizens are secure.
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