"WADI GAZA, Gaza Strip (AP) - A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect in Gaza on Friday, the military said, hours after Israel's Cabinet approved a deal to pause the fighting and exchange the remaining hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Tens of thousands of people who had gathered in Wadi Gaza in central Gaza started walking north after the Israeli military's announcement at noon local time."
"Despite those questions, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted in a televised statement Friday that the next stages would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarized. "If this is achieved the easy way - so be it. If not - it will be achieved the hard way," Netanyahu said. He added that Hamas agreed to the deal "only when it felt that the sword was on its neck - and it is still on its neck.""
"Israeli Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, an Israeli military spokesman, said that troops had completed their withdrawal to the deployment lines by Friday afternoon, a few hours after the ceasefire officially went into effect. Earlier, an Israeli security official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the withdrawal, said the military would control around 50% of Gaza in their new positions."
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect in Gaza after Israel's Cabinet approved a deal to pause fighting and exchange remaining hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Tens of thousands in Wadi Gaza began moving north following the military announcement; heavy shelling was reported earlier but subsided after the ceasefire. The truce follows a two-year war that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, devastated Gaza and destabilized the region. Uncertainties remain about how Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza. Israeli forces completed withdrawal to deployment lines, with an Israeli official saying the military would control about 50% of Gaza.
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