Gaza to get four-day reprieve after Israeli agrees to hostage swap pact: The Israeli cabinet has backed a hostage-for-ceasefire agreement that will see Hamas release a limited number of hostages in return for a four-day ceasefire, Reuters reported this morning, citing the Israeli prime minister’s office. The agreement — the biggest diplomatic breakthrough since the conflict began almost seven weeks ago — follows weeks of negotiations mediated by Egypt and Qatar, and hours of discussions among Israeli officials last night.

What we know:

  • A fifth of hostages to be released: Hamas will release 50 women and children during the four-day truce. The armed group is thought to hold 240 Israeli captives.
  • A prisoner swap: Israel has agreed to release 150 Palestinian prisoners, mostly women and children, during the four-day period, according to Axios.
  • More aid: Israel will allow 300 aid trucks into Gaza every day, a substantial increase from the c.100 trucks that are currently crossing the Rafah border daily.
  • It’s not over the line yet: The agreement won’t come into force until Thursday at the earliest to give for the Supreme Court to rule on the decision.

Arab / Islamic delegation in Moscow: Russia’s chief diplomat Sergey Lavrov became the second P5 foreign minister to call for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages during talks with a delegation of Arab and Islamic officials in Moscow yesterday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Lavrov described Israel’s “collective punishment” of the people of Gaza as “unacceptable,” and urged new humanitarian corridors to be established and steps to be taken towards the creation of a Palestinian state.

Remember: The delegation — which includes Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, as well as the chief diplomats from Palestine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia — is visiting the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to build global support for a ceasefire. It made its first stop in Beijing on Monday where Chinese officials called for an immediate end to the violence.

Egypt makes move at the Security Council: Egypt has drafted a UN Security Council resolution that aims to overcome “existing obstacles and imbalances” to the entry of aid into Gaza, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday, without disclosing further information.

Brics leaders meet, fail to reach an agreement. Leaders from Egypt, South Africa, China, Brazil, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopica, Argentina, the UAE, and Iran attended a remote emergency Brics meeting yesterday to look at ways to de-escalate the ongoing war on Gaza. The meeting ended with a joint statement but no joint declaration, which South African President Cyril Ramaphosa blamed on lack of sufficient time rather than the leaders’ divided stances. In the statement, Brics leaders condemned the forced displacement of the people of Palestine — a move that has been pushed by a number of Israeli officials — and called for a humanitarian truce.

South Africa to cut ties with Israel: South African MPs voted yesterday to close the Israeli embassy and cut diplomatic ties until Israel agrees to a ceasefire, the Associated Press reports. The opposition motion was supported by the ruling African National Congress party and came two weeks after the country withdrew its ambassador from Tel Aviv.

Madbouly reassures MPs on Gaza displacement: Egypt has been under political and economic pressure to allow the displacement of Palestinians to Sinai but the government will not allow this to happen, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly told MPs yesterday. “The government is well aware of conspiracies aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause and destabilizing Egypt's national security,” he said during a parliamentary session. “Egypt will take a firm reaction against any attempts to resettle Palestinians in Sinai.”

ON THE GROUND- Death toll rises to 14.1k+ | Gaza received 76k liters of fuel on Monday | 2journalists killed in Israeli airstrike in Lebanon | 2 journalists killed in Lebanon, and at least 53 killed in total, marking the deadliest month for journalists since CPJ began gathering data in 1992.

Tags: