Israel’s historic ceasefire deal set for delay amid cabinet split

The timing of Israel’s hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas has been thrown into doubt as a far-right minister threatens to quit cabinet, forcing a 24 hour delay on the vote over the agreement.

Benjamin Netanyahu on the phone to US President-elect Donald Trump. Picture: X

The timing of Israel’s hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas has been thrown into doubt amid reports Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet has delayed a vote on the agreement by 24 hours.

The full cabinet is set to delay its vote on the hostage-ceasefire deal until Saturday night, Israel’s Channel 12 TV reports, meaning the implementation of the deal might not start before Monday.

Throwing another spanner in the works, far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has threatened to resign from cabinet if the deal is approved, describing the agreement as “irresponsible”.

Mr Ben-Gvir also called for a “complete stop” to all humanitarian aid for Gaza, including fuel, electricity and water, until all hostages were released.

Mr Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party holds six seats in the 120-seat Parliament, and if the party resigns, it would reduce the government’s parliamentary majority from 68 to a razor-thin majority of 62.

Earlier, it appeared that most of the remaining issues had been resolved, with the Israeli Prime Minister’s cabinet set to vote.

Mr Netanyahu had accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement, underscoring its fragility.

Mr Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that the situation ­created a “last-minute crisis”. “Hamas is reneging on the ­understandings,” it said. “The Israeli cabinet will not convene (to ­ratify the agreement) until mediators notify Israel Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement.”

But on Friday morning (AEDT) the Axios new website reported that an agreement between both parties had been reached and the ceasefire will go ahead as planned on Sunday.

Amid conflicting reports on the deal’s finality, Aryeh Deri, head of the Shas party, told Israeli media: “The last things have been finalised, an official announcement will be made shortly.”

However a diplomatic source told Israeli media Mr Netanyahu was “adamant on finalising all the details of the agreement” before taking it to his cabinet.

The truce comes as Donald Trump returns to the White House on a new mission to reconcile the competing objectives of Israel and Hamas within a 42-day truce period, as he seeks a lasting end to hostilities under a three-step ceasefire being hailed as a major breakthrough.

The deal was reached after 15 months of fighting following the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel when Hamas killed 1200 people and took 251 hostages, with the Jewish state mounting an intense military response aimed at eliminating the terror group and weakening Tehran’s regional influence.

Outgoing US President Joe Biden had earlier taken credit for putting forward the ceasefire proposal last year and marshalling support for it, but he acknowledged the breakthrough was achieved through a collaboration between his administration and the incoming Trump team.

“Blessed are the peacemakers,” Mr Biden said. “This deal was developed and negotiated under my administration, but its terms will be implemented for the most part by the next administration.

“These past few days we’ve been speaking as one team.”

Middle East experts said the agreement – slated to begin on Sunday – could provide a pathway to ending the conflict that the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says has claimed more than 46,000 Palestinian lives, although this figure does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

Warnings were quickly sounded by Jewish groups and strategic analysts, however, who said there was no guarantee of an enduring ceasefire given questions over the political future of Gaza and respective roles of Hamas and Israel had not been settled.

Of the almost 100 hostages ­believed to remain in Gaza, 33 would be released under phase one of the deal and ­Israel would ­release more than 1000 Palestinian prisoners in return.

As fighting continued between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, both sides promoted the deal as a major step forward and global leaders – including Anthony Albanese – ­expressed hope it would provide the foundation for an enduring political settlement.

Mr Trump quickly claimed cred­it for the “EPIC ceasefire agreement” on Truth Social, where he confirmed a deal had been struck ahead of its announcement, saying it “could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November”.

He vowed to build on the existing framework and said his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, who helped shake up year-long negotiations, would “continue to work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven”.

“We will continue to promote peace through strength throughout the region, as we build upon the momentum of this ceasefire ... This is only the beginning of great things to come for America, and indeed, the World!” Mr Trump wrote.

A short time later, Mr Biden said the deal would establish an initial phase lasting 42 days in which there would be a “full and complete ceasefire”, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the populated areas of Gaza as well as a prisoner-for-hostage ­exchange.

The Israeli cabinet was set to meet at 11am on Thursday local time to approve the ceasefire agreement, despite the ongoing opposition of some members of Mr Netanyahu’s coalition.

Mr Netanyahu spoke with Mr Trump and Mr Biden to thank them for advancing the ceasefire, although his office ­noted that “several clauses in the framework ­remain unresolved”.

Under the agreement, three hostages would be released by Hamas on Sunday, followed by four more on the seventh day after which three hostages would be released once a week. The final 14 hostages would be freed during the final week of phase one.

In return, the Jewish state would release Palestinian prisoners including women, children, the elderly and the injured, while ­humanitarian assistance would be surged into Gaza.

For every civilian or child hostage that Hamas releases, Israel would release 30 Palestinian children or women held for security offences; for every kidnapped Israeli soldier that Hamas releases, the Jewish state would release 50 Palestinian prisoners.

In total, more than 1000 Palestinian security prisoners would be released in return for the initial 33 hostages. The remaining hostages – thought to number more than 60 – would be released only if both sides reach agreement on a way forward, with negotiations for phase two beginning two weeks into the ceasefire.

For the deal to hold, Hamas and Israel will need to negotiate a “permanent end of the war” within the initial six weeks. Mr Biden provided an assurance the 42-day deadline could be indefinitely ­extended if talks dragged out.

“Finally, phase three – any final remains of hostages who have been killed will be returned to their families. And a major reconstruction plan for Gaza will begin,” Mr Biden said.

Mr Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia urged all parties to respect the agreement and “safeguard a lasting peace, including ensuring the immediate release of all hostages and unimpeded and sustained increases in humanitarian assistance to all parts of Gaza”.

They stressed that Australia remained “unequivocal” in its condemnation of Hamas’s atrocities against Israel on October 7, 2023, and made clear that “there must be no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza”.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani speaks to reporters about the deal. Picture: AFP.

Former Australian ambassador to Israel and Liberal senator for NSW Dave Sharma told The Australian the deal “puts off some of the more difficult questions” including the “future governance ­arrangements of Gaza, the fate of the remaining hostages and ­Israel’s presence and operational freedom in Gaza”. “Those are the issues that have not been permanently addressed and will have to be,” he said. “It’s not an end to the conflict … That’s not going to be an easy negotiation.”

Senator Sharma said the Trump administration had some advantages in trying to turn the initial ceasefire deal into a more permanent solution: “They don’t have the same sort of domestic political constituencies Biden has had through this conflict.” He argued that Mr Trump would “carry more political weight in Jerusalem” and spoke more directly to the Likud base in Israel “so they have more political sway and ­influence”.

Colin Rubenstein, executive director of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, said he was “mindful of the fact that dozens of Israeli hostages are not part of the agreed first phase of the deal, and will continue to languish in captivity … The war in Gaza cannot come to a final end until they are released and Hamas’s rule over Gaza is permanently ended.”