Live: Israel dropped 153 tonnes of bombs on Gaza on Sunday

"Canada welcomes the agreement of Israel and Hamas to implement the first phase of the peace plan put forward by President Trump, and facilitated by Qatar, Egypt and Turkey.

"Canada will support all efforts to turn this positive step into lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians."

"I welcome the announcement of an agreement to secure a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza, based on the proposal put forward by President Donald J. Trump. I commend the diplomatic efforts of the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkey in brokering this desperately needed breakthrough.

"I urge all concerned to abide fully by the terms of the agreement. All hostages must be released in a dignified manner. A permanent ceasefire must be secured. The fighting must stop once and for all. Immediate and unimpeded entry of humanitarian supplies and essential commercial materials into Gaza must be ensured. The suffering must end.

"I urge all stakeholders to seize this momentous opportunity to establish a credible political path forward towards ending the occupation, recognising the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, and achieving a two-state solution that enables Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security."

"Hamas needs to release all of the hostages and Israel must withdraw their troops to the agreed-upon line," Winston Peters said in a statement."

"This is an essential first step towards achieving lasting peace. We urge Israel and Hamas to continue working towards a complete resolution."

German chancellor Friedrich Merz

"We are encouraged by the developments in Israel. There is obviously a great chance of reaching an agreement with Hamas in the next few hours."

French president Emmanuel Macron

"This agreement must mark the end of the war and the beginning of a political solution based on the two-state solution," Macron said in posts on social media platform X.

"France stands ready to contribute to this goal. We will discuss it this afternoon in Paris with our international partners," he added.

"A big day for Israel ... Tomorrow I will convene the government to approve the agreement and bring all our dear hostages home. I thank the heroic IDF soldiers and all the security forces - thanks to their courage and sacrifice, we have reached this day.

"I thank from the bottom of my heart President Trump and his team for their dedication to this sacred mission of freeing our hostages."

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen

"Now, all parties must fully uphold the terms of the agreement. All hostages must be released safely. A permanent ceasefire must be established. The suffering must end."

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Thursday that Hamas must be destroyed following the return of captives from Gaza.

Smotrich said on X that he fears of the consequences releasing Palestinian prisoners under the agreement, calling the detainees "the next generation of terrorist leaders".

Smotrich said he will not vote in favour of a ceasefire deal with Hamas to end Israel's war on Gaza, but stopped short of threatening to bring down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition government.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed satisfaction on Thursday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of a ceasefire in Gaza and thanked US President Donald Trump's efforts to end Israel's war on Gaza.

"I am greatly pleased that the Hamas-Israel talks... have resulted in a ceasefire in Gaza, I especially thank US President, Mr Trump, who demonstrated the necessary political will to encourage the Israeli government toward the ceasefire," Erdogan said on his official X account.

Turkey, which has been closely involved in the negotiations and sent a team to the talks in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh, would "closely monitor the strict implementation of the agreement", he added. 

The European Union on Thursday said the peace plan deal between Israel and Hamas was a "significant breakthrough".

"This is a major diplomatic accomplishment and a real chance to end a devastating war and release all the captives," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, adding: "The EU will do what it can to support its implementation".

Israeli attacks have continued in the Gaza Strip despite an announcement by mediators on Thursday that a ceasefire had been reached to end the two-year war on the Palestinian enclave.

Heavy air strikes and artillery shelling were reported in Gaza City and Khan Younis overnight, according to local media.

Israeli quadcopters were also reported to have dropped bombs on civilians in Gaza City.

At least one person was killed in the attacks.

The renewed strikes came after US, Qatari, and Egyptian mediators announced early Thursday that a deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas to end the war.

Read more: Israeli attacks persists in Gaza after ceasefire agreement announced

The Israeli military said on Wednesday it had begun operational preparations for the implementation of the Gaza agreement.

The ceasefire is expected to take effect on the ground in Gaza once the deal is signed, a source briefed on the details of the agreement said.

The signing of the Gaza ceasefire is expected at 1200 Israel time (0900 GMT), the source added.

Hamas called on the US President Trump, the guarantor states of the agreement, and all Arab, Islamic, and international parties to "compel the occupation government to fully implement its obligations under the agreement".

The group said in a statement that it "highly appreciates the efforts of our brothers and mediators in Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey" and also "values the efforts of US President Donald Trump aimed at ending the war completely and achieving a full withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip".

The Gaza civil defence agency on Thursday reported several strikes on the territory after the announcement that Hamas and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire plan.

"Since the announcement last night of an agreement on a proposed ceasefire framework in Gaza, several explosions have been reported, particularly in areas of northern Gaza," said one of the agency's officials, Mohammed al-Mughayyir, citing "a series of intense air strikes" on Gaza City.

Good morning, Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates from Israel's war on Gaza:

• US President Donald Trump said he believes all the captives held in Gaza, including the bodies of those deceased, will be "coming back" Monday after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire.

• Trump said Wednesday the United States will play a role in helping to rebuild war-torn Gaza and keep it safe and peaceful, after Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of his plan.

• UN chief Antonio Guterres welcomed the Israel-Hamas agreement, calling on all parties to "abide fully" by its terms.

• Hamas will exchange 20 living captives for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners as part of the first phase of a deal to end Israel's war on Gaza, a source within the group told AFP Thursday.

• The first phase of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is to be signed on Thursday in Egypt at roughly 0900 GMT, a source with knowledge of the agreement told AFP.

• British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he welcomed the agreement on the first stage of Trump's plan for Gaza, urging that it must be implemented in full without delay.

US President Donald Trump announced late on Wednesday that Israel and the Palestinian movement Hamas had "both signed off" on the "first phase" of a plan to end the two-year genocidal war on Gaza.

Writing on the social media platform Truth social, Trump said: "This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace. All Parties will be treated fairly!

"This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen.

"BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!"

Read more: Trump says Israel and Hamas have 'both signed off' on first phase of Gaza ceasefire plan

Our live blog will shortly be closing until tomorrow morning.

Here are the day's key developments:

- Health officials in Gaza said eight people have been killed in Israeli air strikes since dawn, local time, on Wednesday. 

- US President Donald Trump said he is considering flying to Egypt and elsewhere in the region on Saturday, citing a potentially imminent announcement about a Gaza ceasefire deal. Earlier on Wednesday Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also suggested a ceasefire deal could be announced within hours. 

- DropSite News reported late on Wednesday that Hamas and other Palestinian factions have agreed to a framework for a Gaza ceasefire after three days of talks in Egypt. Hamas officials told the news outlet that only a few points remain that need to be finalised.

- Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on Wednesday stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for the second time in a day, declaring an Israeli "victory" there, AFP reported. Hamas condemned his visit as a "deliberate provocation". 

- A Spanish arms embargo was voted into law on Wednesday that bans all weapons sales and fuel transits to Israel, and also the adveritising of products that come from the occupied Palestinian territories, Al Jazeera reported. 

- The latest research reports from the Costs of War project at Brown University in the US now show that more than 10 percent of Gaza's pre-war population has been killed or maimed during Israel's genocide in the enclave since 7 October 2023. 

A study conducted by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (Unrwa) shows that 54,600 children in Gaza are either acutely or severely malnourished, The Lancet reported on Wednesday.

Acute malnutrition (or wasting) is a life-threatening condition and is defined as a child being too thin for their height, indicating rapid weight loss and a severe lack of energy, protein and other nutrients.

It can also be assessed by measuring the circumference of a child’s upper arm with a calibrated tape, as was done in the Unrwa study.

Children suffering from wasting require regular treatment with therapeutic food over several weeks, or in extreme cases and when possible, hospitalisation. In Gaza, few therapeutic options are available to impacted children.

Read more: Over 50,000 children under five suffering acute malnutrition in Gaza

DropSite News reported late on Wednesday that Hamas and other Palestinian factions have agreed to a framework for a Gaza ceasefire after three days of talks in Egypt.

The report cites a senior Hamas official and a second source close to the Palestinian negotiating team who said: “From our side, yes,” there is indeed an agreement.

Some areas still need to be finalised with the mediators, the officials told DropSite.

But “It’s over, it’s over. It’s been decided,” the second source in the report said. “Everybody’s agreed on it. There are a few things that will be discussed, but it’s over.”

Reactions from across the spectrum have poured in online following New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani’s 7 October statement, which many Palestinians and pro-Palestine advocates say shows him bending the knee to political pressure.

Published on the second anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on 7 October, Mamdani began the statement by mourning "the 1,100 Israelis killed and hundreds taken hostage".

He then pivoted to denounce Israel’s military response: "In the aftermath… Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli government launched a genocidal war… A death toll that now far exceeds 67,000; with the Israeli military bombing homes, hospitals, and schools into rubble… Every day in Gaza has become a place where grief itself has run out of language… Our government has been complicit through it all. The occupation and apartheid must end."

Pro-Palestine social media users were quick to respond to his statement, with many pointing out that neither "Palestinians" or "Palestine" was used once. 

Read more: Zohran Mamdani under fire from all sides following 7 October statement

The latest research reports from the Costs of War project at Brown University in the US now show that more than 10 percent of Gaza's pre-war population has been killed or maimed during Israel's genocide in the enclave since 7 October 2023. 

The 236,505 total casualties, counted as of 3 October, are "not an exaggeration, as some critics argue; they are likely an undercount," the Costs of War project said. 

In terms of US funding, the project found that Washington has spent a total of $31bn on military aid to Israel and US military operations in the region, such as air strikes on Yemen and Iran, since the beginning of Israel's war on Gaza. 

Between October 2023 and September 2025, the US spent $21.7bn on military aid to Israel - a figure that does not include the tens of billions of dollars in arms sales agreements that have been committed for weapons and services that will be paid for and delivered in the years to come, the project said.

During the same period, an additional $9.65bn to $12.07bn was spent on US military operations in Yemen, Iran and the wider region, totaling between $31.35bn and $33.77bn in overall spending on the post-7 October war campaigns, the reports showed.