Friday Briefing: Cease-Fire Vote Delayed

The aftermath of Israeli strikes in Jabaliya, in northern Gaza, yesterday.Credit…Omar Al-Qattaa/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Disputes delayed an Israeli vote on the cease-fire

Israel’s cabinet said yesterday that it was unlikely to meet to ratify a cease-fire agreement that had raised hopes for an end to 15 months of devastating war in Gaza. At the time this briefing was sent, they were not expected to meet until at least today. Here’s the latest.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s hard-line national security minister, threatened to resign and remove his party from the government if the deal was approved.

The office of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, accused Hamas of trying to renegotiate parts of the deal. Netanyahu’s spokesman said that Hamas had demanded changes to the deployment of Israeli troops along Gaza’s border with Egypt, as well as the release of “certain terrorists” unacceptable to Israel. A senior Hamas official said the group was committed to the deal, but specific questions about the disputes went unanswered.

The Biden administration said that its team was continuing to work with Israeli officials and mediators. “I am confident and I fully expect that implementation will begin, as we said, on Sunday,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

Details: The deal would begin with a six-week phase involving the release of 33 hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, and allow the entry into Gaza of 600 trucks carrying humanitarian relief daily, according to a copy of the agreement obtained by The Times.

On the ground: Many Gazans reacted to the prospect of a cease-fire with a wary hope tempered by sadness. “How can we ever rebuild? Where will we even begin?”