Ahead of cabinet meeting, Israel confirms signing phase one of Gaza ceasefire deal

The final draft of phase one of the ceasefire was signed this morning in Egypt by all parties to release all the hostages, Israeli government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian told journalists.

"Now phase one stands very clear: all of our hostages, the living and the deceased, will be released 72 hours later, which will bring us to Monday," she said.

Bedrosian said the ceasefire will take effect "within 24 hours" from a meeting of Israel's security cabinet scheduled for Thursday at 1400 GMT, in which the plan is expected to be approved.

"Israel will then redeploy (troops) to the yellow line as shown on maps which have been widely distributed at this point, and now after this 24-hour period, the 72-hour time window will then begin where all of our hostages will be released back into Israel," she said.

The security cabinet meeting will be followed by a full government meeting at 1500 GMT.

Both Israel and Hamas have confirmed their commitment to the initial phase, which centres on three pillars: a prisoner exchange, Israeli troop withdrawal to designated lines and the entry of critical humanitarian aid into Gaza after years of blockade.

Hamas sources said the first exchange will see 20 Israeli captives freed in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

This includes 250 Palestinians serving life sentences and 1,700 others, many of them women and children, detained since the onset of the war. The swap is expected to occur within 72 hours of the deal's implementation.

The Israeli security cabinet meets in a few hours to discuss the deal.