President Joe Biden welcomed the agreement to free dozens of hostages seized in Hamas’s Oct. 7 assault on Israel during a four-day pause of fighting in the Gaza Strip.
“I am extraordinarily gratified that some of these brave souls, who have endured weeks of captivity and an unspeakable ordeal, will be reunited with their families once this deal is fully implemented,” the president said in a statement released by the White House late Tuesday night.
Israel’s cabinet approved the deal with Hamas, which was mediated by Qatar. In the initial stage of the agreement, Hamas will free 50 Israeli women and children held in Gaza. Hamas, in a statement posted on Telegram, said Israel had agreed to release about 150 Palestinian prisoners, mostly women and children, in return.
Three Americans are expected to be released as part of the agreement, a US official said.
The accord marks a watershed moment in the Israel-Hamas war, which has continued nearly unabated for a month in the face of growing international pressure on Israel to reduce civilian deaths in Gaza and for both sides to work toward a hostage release.
Biden, in his statement, thanked Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for their roles in reaching the agreement.
Biden said he appreciated “the commitment that Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government have made in supporting an extended pause to ensure this deal can be fully carried out and to ensure the provision of additional humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering of innocent Palestinian families in Gaza.”
The president added that “it is important that all aspects of this deal be fully implemented.”
Still, the pact is limited in scope. It falls short of an extended cease-fire demanded by dozens of nations and some members of Biden’s own party, and also did not result in the majority of hostages being released.
Biden and allies have rejected a cease-fire, saying it would allow Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist group by the US and European Union to regroup. The American president, however, has also urged Israel to do more to halt the killing of civilians.
Read More: Israel Approves Hostage Deal and Pause in War With Hamas
Senior administration officials briefed reporters late Tuesday on the negotiations that led to the deal.
Among the American hostages who meet the criteria for release are a three-year-old girl and two women, according to a US official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations. There are 10 unaccounted for Americans and the US is determined to eventually secure the release of all of them, the official said.
The officials cast the mid-October release of two Americans, Judith Raanan and her daughter Natalie, as a crucial step toward the breakthrough. The release of the pair, two weeks after the war’s start, provided the Biden administration with confidence a broader deal could be negotiated, according to the US officials.
In another key moment highlighted by US officials, negotiators demanded Hamas produce a list of hostages with specific identifying information, and guarantees of release. The group failed to produce identifying criteria for more than 10 of those captives until the emir put pressure on Hamas to release the information.
Still, it was only within the last 48 hours that Hamas addressed what a US official characterized as fairly significant issues, giving Israel the confidence to move forward.
Earlier: Netanyahu Says War Will Continue as Gaza Hostage Deal Nears
Israel, which has vowed to destroy Hamas, has said for weeks that it would not contemplate a cease-fire until all hostages are returned. Netanyahu indicated earlier Tuesday that his government would not let up in its campaign to eliminate Hamas.
“There is nonsense out there as if after the pause in fighting, we will stop the war,” Netanyahu said at a meeting of the Israeli Cabinet, according to his office. “We are at war and we will continue it until we achieve all the objectives.”