Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal: How will it be executed? What next?

More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.

After over 460 days, Israel and Hamas have agreed to pause the war in the Gaza Strip. The three-phase deal promises the release of Israeli hostages held in the enclave and Palestinians held in Israeli custody.

Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said the deal would come into effect on Sunday. According to Israel, some final details remain, and an Israeli government vote is expected on Thursday. The agreement must be officially voted on favourably by the Israel security cabinet, then approved by the full cabinet.

More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.

How will the deal be implemented?

The initial phase, which will last six weeks, will involve a limited prisoner exchange, the partial withdrawal of Israeli troops in Gaza and a surge of aid into the enclave. According to Al Jazeera, 33 Israeli captives, including women, children and civilians over the age of 50 will be released.

Israel will also withdraw its forces from Gaza’s population centres to areas no more than 700 metres inside Gaza’s border with Israel. However, this may exclude the Netzarim Corridor.

Israel will also allow civilians to return to their homes in the enclave’s besieged north.

The wounded Palestinians can now leave the Gaza Strip for treatment. The Rafah crossing with Egypt will be opened seven days after the start of the implementation of the first phase.

Israeli forces will also reduce their presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, the border area between Egypt and Gaza, and then withdraw completely no later than the 50th day after the deal comes into effect, according to reports.

US President Joe Biden has said that the ceasefire will continue even if the negotiations on the second and third phases go beyond the initial six weeks of the first phase. Israel reportedly refused written guarantees to rule out a resumption of its attacks once the first phase is complete and its civilian captives returned.

Once the first phase is completed, Hamas may release all the remaining living captives, mostly male soldiers, in return for the freeing of more Palestinians held in the Israeli prisons. After this, the third phase may see the bodies of the remaining captives handed over in return for a three- to five-year reconstruction plan which will have to be conducted under international supervision.

What happens after the three phases are implemented?

There is no clear agreement over who will administer Gaza beyond the ceasefire.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday said the post-war reconstruction and governance envisions the Palestinian Authority inviting “international partners” to stand up an interim governing authority to run critical services and oversee the territory.

Other partners, notably Arab states, would provide forces to ensure security in the short term, he said in a speech at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank as quoted by Al Jazeera.

Israel is yet to suggest an alternative form of governance in Gaza.