One Israeli strike on a house in Gaza City killed 18 people as Palestinians await the start of the ceasefire on Sunday.

If successful, the cease-fire deal would cap over a year of stop-start talks and lead to the biggest release of Israeli hostages since the early days of the conflict, when Hamas freed about half of its prisoners in exchange for 240 Palestinian detainees held by Israel.

The complex accord emerged Wednesday after months of mediation by Qatar, Egypt & the US. Israeli bombardment, especially in Gaza City, killed 32 people hours later, medics say.

Rockets fired from Gaza and intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system over Israeli skies are seen from Gaza City, on May 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair, File) DOHA, Qatar — Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal to pause the devastating war in the Gaza Strip,

President Joe Biden and his top diplomats, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, had sought closure during his term.

Rockets fired from Gaza and intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system over Israeli skies are seen from Gaza City, on May 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair, File) DOHA, Qatar — Israel and Hamas agreed to pause the devastating war in the Gaza Strip,

By Andrew Mills, Nidal al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie DOHA/CAIRO/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -The Israeli cabinet will meet to give final approval to a deal with militant group Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and a release of hostages,

The deal promises the release of dozens of hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and would flood badly needed humanitarian aid into a devastated territory.

The anticipated ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, scheduled for Sunday morning at 08:30 local time (06:30 GMT), has been delayed. Ahram Online provides a live coverage of the events which could signal the start of the end of 470 days of a genocidal Israeli war that killed and wounded nearly 10 percent of the 2.

The Israeli cabinet still has to ratify the deal, and some details remained unresolved. President Biden said hostages were to be released over 42 days.

The UN has said that people in Gaza are “effectively starving.” Before the war, the territory was “largely self-sufficient” in fresh produce, it added. But Israel’s mili