Last updated on January 19th, 2025 at 11:37 pm
Update : The media was too quick to report the ceasefire deal as if it had been ratified and was already put in place. Even President Joe Biden came out and announced the deal at a press conference. President-Elect Donald Trump was on Truth Social taking credit for the victory. Meanwhile, anyone who had been paying attention to the entire process of getting an Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal wasn’t convinced, saying that it’s not a done deal until Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right members of his cabinet say it’s a done deal.
The language and concessions in this ceasefire are very similar to the deal President Biden had tried to get over the finish line in May of 2024. Hamas said as much in a statement to the press Thursday, after the ceasefire was announced. From Al Jazeerah: “The ceasefire agreed upon on Wednesday is roughly the same as an earlier one proposed in May, which was agreed to by Hamas but rejected by Israel, which promptly went on to invade the city of Rafah in southern Gaza.”
Hamas has been vocal about their concerns that Netanyahu would find a way to back out of the deal or to destroy it. It wasn’t long after President Joe Biden and President-Elect Donald Trump had announced and took credit for the ceasefire deal that Netanyahu blamed Hamas, saying the group had already reneged on parts of it. That wasn’t true, however. Hamas denied the accusation and the far-right members of Netanyahu’s cabinet made statements that they were the cause of the deal not going into effect. The Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, said that he had blocked previous ceasefire deals and was proud to have done so. He was now threatening, along with others, to leave government if Netanyahu went ahead with the ceasefire. Without them, the Prime Minister would lose his majority, threatening his ability to remain in power.
Israel continues the slaughter
Even after the deal was announced on Thursday, Israel continued their bombing campaign in Gaza.
From CNN :
“At least 111 Palestinians have been killed – including 28 children and 31 women – since the deal was announced, Mahmoud Basal, a spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defense, said on Friday. More than 264 people have been injured, Basal added.”
In a statement earlier Friday, Hamas said that Israel is “deliberately committing these massacres in its quest to thwart the ceasefire agreement,” asking mediators to pressure Israel to “stop the massacres.”
Despite these setbacks, the Israeli government was able to ratify the ceasefire on Friday afternoon. A final vote is guaranteed to be successful, according to reporters in the region.
January 15, 2025
An Israel and Hamas ceasefire deal has been reached consisting of several phases indicating where IDF troops will withdraw from, what hostages will be released, and how much aid will be allowed into Gaza—where Palestinians are in desperate need of food and medical supplies.
President Biden is speaking live (PBS) to the country about the Israel and Hamas cease-fire deal. Meanwhile, Donald Trump took to Truth Social to announce the ceasefire and take credit for finalizing the agreement.