Qatar announces Gaza ceasefire

Qatar announces Gaza ceasefire

January 15, 2025 | 7:18 PM GMT

Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s prime minister and foreign affairs minister, spoke on Jan. 15, as Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire.

       Israel and Hamas agree to ceasefire deal, including hostage release, Biden says

A hostage and ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel has been reached Wednesday following more than 15 months of extraordinary bloodshed and violence in Gaza, President Joe Biden said Wednesday. Implementation of the agreement is to start on Sunday, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said at a news conference announcing the deal in Doha, the Qatari capital, where intense negotiations have taken place over the past several weeks.

The agreement, which requires ratification by a vote of Israel’s cabinet, follows an intense period of meetings and calls over the past several days, including by Biden to the leaders of Israel and mediating partners Qatar and Egypt. Steve Witkoff, President-elect Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, has also played an instrumental role, meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the weekend to express Trump’s interest in attaining a deal before his inauguration on Monday.