The halt in hostilities is set to formally begin at 10am and – if successful – will be the first break in fighting since the terrorist group’s October 7 atrocities.
In exchange for the 50 women and children captives, Hamas said that 150 Palestinian women and teenagers would be released from Israeli jails.
Also within the terms of the agreement thrashed out overnight yesterday, it added that hundreds of lorries of humanitarian aid, medical supplies and fuel would be allowed into the devastated war-torn strip.
It comes as a British father of 12-year-old twins killed in last month’s deadly raid in southern Israel described his harrowing loss.
Gavin Heller, who lives in North London, said the “unfathomable, unimaginable, unspeakable has happened to my gorgeous children”.
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His son Yannai and daughter Liel Hetzroni-Heller were murdered at Kibbutz Be’eri. The siblings were raised in Israel by their great aunt who also died in the massacre of 1,200 people which triggered the current conflict.
The deal for the hostage/prisoner exchange had been mainly brokered by Qatar.
Its prime minister pointedly thanked the US and Egypt for their help in negotiating the pause.
Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said he hoped the terms would establish a “comprehensive and sustainable agreement” that would “put an end to the war and the bloodshed”.
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The prime minister also said he hoped it would “lead to serious talks for a comprehensive and just peace process”. US President Joe Biden welcomed the agreement, saying it will “alleviate the suffering of innocent Palestinians”. He praised Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for ensuring that more humanitarian assistance for Gaza was part of the deal.
And addressing Parliament yesterday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it would halt the “nightmare” for thousands of families.
Israel also revealed a list of 300 Palestinians who could be exchanged for more of the 200-plus Israeli and foreign captives snatched last month.
Ahead of the start of the exchange, relatives of the hostages were nervously awaiting news on the possible release of their loved ones.
Omer Lubaton Granot said he was hopeful his unnamed relative and her three children will be among the 50 freed. He said: “We are still hoping we will see them home.
“We are waiting and want them to come back to their normal lives.”
Relatives of Noa Argamani, kidnapped from the Supernova music festival, also hope she will be freed.
Israel insists the deal and temporary ceasefire do not mean the war is over, reiterating its aim to “complete the elimination of Hamas”. And yesterday morning Jerusalem confirmed its ground and air operation in Gaza was continuing before the pause starts.
In an update posted on X, the Israel Defence Forces gave details of strikes, exchanges of fire with Hamas gunmen and the destruction of the fanatics’ alleged infrastructure.
It said: “IDF forces continue to operate in the Gaza Strip to destroy terrorist infrastructures, eliminate terrorists and locate weapons.
“In the last day, the fighters of the 7th Brigade’s combat team directed a number of aircraft strikes in which infrastructures were attacked.”
As violence continues to escalate in the occupied West Bank, the city of Khan Younis in the south of the Gaza Strip was among numerous areas targeted by the IDF.
The Palestinian news agency Wafa said more than 60 people were killed in an air strike on the Jabalia camp in the north. Nine people were also killed by strikes on the Nuseirat camp in the territory’s central zone.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says that more than 14,000 people –including more than 5,000 children –have been killed so far in Israel’s campaign.
And the UN says 1.7 million, nearly three-quarters of the enclave’s population, have been displaced.
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