Israeli Security Cabinet Votes To Approve Ceasefire And Hostage Deal

Israel’s security cabinet voted to approve the ceasefire and hostage deal between the Jewish state and Hamas on Friday. The deal is still awaiting a vote in the full cabinet in order to be approved.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, both of whom have voiced their reservations about the deal’s potential risks to Israel’s security, voted no. Ben-Gvir threatened to quit the government if the deal was approved.

Netanyahu’s Likud Party responded by stating that “Anyone who dissolves the right-wing government will be remembered as an eternal disgrace.”

In the deal’s first phase, about 33 hostages will be exchanged for 1,000 Palestinian terrorists in Israeli prisons. The Israel Defense Forces will also withdraw from parts of the Gaza Strip. The fate of the 65 hostages who remain in Gaza is set to be discussed in the later stages of the deal.

The names of the 33 hostages have been released, and the list includes two Americans: Keith Siegel, 65, and Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36. The first three hostages could be released as early as Sunday, pending the deal’s approval. Only 22 of those hostages are believed to be alive.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on X that two French citizens, Ofer Kalderon and Ohad Yahalomi, are expected to be among the first released. 

The full cabinet is expected to meet later on Friday.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog welcomed the vote’s results, stating that he expects “the government to follow suit in swiftly affirming this decision.”

“This is a vital step toward fulfilling the highest covenant between the state and its citizens,” he said. “There is no greater moral, human, Jewish, and Israeli duty. We must bring all of our hostages back home.”