MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
An agreement has been reached between Israel and Hamas to stop the fighting in Gaza.
SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
It calls for a multiphase ceasefire that would commit both sides to ending more than 15 months of war.
KELLY: The war in Gaza began with a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. That attack killed around 1,200 people, according to Israel. Around 250 people were taken hostage into Gaza.
DETROW: The same day, Israel started bombing Gaza, launching a devastating military campaign against Hamas that has killed more than 46,500 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Ministry of Health. More than 400 Israeli soldiers have also been killed in the fighting.
KELLY: And it left Gaza in ruins. It has caused massive, near-constant displacement for large swaths of the civilian population. Many people have been living in makeshift housing for months.
DETROW: The United States has played a key role in brokering the deal. President Biden announced the agreement in a speech earlier today, saying he was confident it would hold.
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PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: The road to this deal has not been easy. I've worked in foreign policy for decades. This is one of the toughest negotiations I've ever experienced.
KELLY: To talk more about this deal and how difficult it was to get here, I want to bring in NPR's Kat Lonsdorf, who is on the line from Tel Aviv. Hey, Kat.
KAT LONSDORF, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise.
KELLY: Lay out for me the details of the deal. What do we know?
LONSDORF: Yeah, so like you all said, it's going to be a multiphase deal, and it's going to start right after noon local time this Sunday. The first phase of the deal is a six-week ceasefire, and it's going to allow for the staggered release of 33 of the remaining 98 Israeli hostages in Gaza. They'll be exchanged for around a thousand Palestinian detainees over time during those six weeks. That phase will also allow for more entry of much-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza. The details of the mechanics of that haven't really been made public yet, but much of it will be coming in through the Rafah Crossing in southern Gaza from Egypt.
The Israeli military will also begin to withdraw from Gaza, basically out from the inner parts towards the perimeter, but not withdraw fully during that first phase. During that first week - six-week period, negotiations will start for the next phase of the deal. The idea is that more hostages will be released in further phases in exchange for more Palestinian detainees while the Israeli military withdraws further until all hostages are released and the Israeli military has left Gaza.
KELLY: Back to what we just heard President Biden saying, Kat, that this was one of the toughest negotiations he's ever been in. What has it taken to get here?
LONSDORF: This has been months and months in the making. I mean, you might remember that Biden announced the framework of this deal back in the end of May. And since then, there have been several rounds of negotiations, and each time, those negotiations have fallen apart. This current round has been in the works for weeks. It's been in Doha, with Egypt, Qatar and the U.S. as mediators between Israel and Hamas.
The Biden administration had a team there, and then last week, President-elect Trump sent representatives out there, too. Trump put out a lot of pressure on Israel to have this deal done by the time he comes into office next Monday. And even now, I'll just say while we have confirmation that the deal is agreed on by almost all parties involved - Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. and Hamas - Israel is still saying that there are several, quote, "unresolved issues in the agreement," and that they hope to get those issues resolved tonight.
KELLY: What is the reaction there in Tel Aviv tonight?
LONSDORF: It feels hopeful, but hesitant. You know, this has been a tragic time for both Israelis and Palestinians, and there seems to be an understanding on both sides that a ceasefire is just the beginning of a long process of healing and rebuilding. Here in Tel Aviv, people gathered at what's become known as Hostage Square. It's a place for family members of hostages and former hostages and the public to demonstrate. And the mood there was subdued tonight. You know, people are cautious after seeing negotiations fall apart so many times before, and especially with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yet to announce that the deal is done here.
Our team talked with 70-year-old Luis Har there. He was a hostage, actually, held in Gaza for many months. And he told us he's happy about the deal, but...
LUIS HAR: (Speaking Hebrew).
LONSDORF: He told us, "until we see them, I won't believe it," referring to the hostages still in Gaza.
KELLY: Yeah. Meanwhile, I'm curious what we are hearing from our colleagues in Gaza - our colleague Anas Baba, who's been reporting all through this war. What are you hearing from him today?
LONSDORF: Yeah. Well, you know, this morning, Anas was out reporting on an Israeli airstrike in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, that happened overnight. It killed at least 11 Palestinians, including children. And he called me this morning saying that he was sad that he was out reporting on this and not a ceasefire, as he had hoped.
You know, after the deal was announced, I called Anas again, and he said, people are, of course, talking about it, but there were no big celebrations there either. You know, there were several airstrikes just tonight, even after the deal was announced. People are hunkering down, thinking that the fighting might get worse before it gets better. He said, maybe Sunday, after the ceasefire hopefully goes into effect - maybe they'll celebrate then.
KELLY: NPR's Kat Lonsdorf in Tel Aviv. Thank you.
LONSDORF: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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