CAIRO (NEWSnet/AP) — Israel and Hamas are taking steps toward an agreement that would free some of the roughly 130 hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for a six-week pause in the war.

U.S. President Joe Biden says such a deal might be ready to go into effect as early as Monday. That's before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which will begin around March 10.

An attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 sparked the war, which has resulted in devastation in parts of Gaza.

Here is a look at the emerging agreement.

Six-Week Cease-Fire Plan

 

According to a senior official from Egypt, a six-week cease-fire would go into effect.

In return for the pause, Hamas would agree to free up to 40 hostages — mostly civilian women, at least two children, and older and sick captives. Israel would release at least 300 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, the official said.

Israel would also allow displaced Palestinians to return to certain areas in northern Gaza, which was the first target of Israel’s ground offensive and suffered widespread destruction, according to the official from Egpyt, which is mediating the deal along with the U.S. and Qatar.

The Egyptian official said aid deliveries would increase during the cease-fire, with 300 to 500 trucks entering the territory per day, far more than the daily average number of trucks entering since the start of the war.

The deliveries to areas across Gaza would be facilitated by Israel, whose forces would refrain from attacks on them and on police escorting the aid convoys, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss details of the talks with journalists.

Sticking Points in Negotiations

 

Despite Biden’s optimism, there are significant details yet to be agreed on.

For example, Israel wants all female soldiers included in the first phase of hostage releases, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing talks. But Hamas views any soldier as significant bargaining chips and is likely to press back on this demand.

The Egyptian official said the sides also are discussing how many Palestinians would be allowed to return to northern Gaza, and whether to limit who is eligible to return.

At this time, more than half of Gaza’s population has fled to Rafah, the southern city on the Egyptian border. Israel wants to destroy what it says are the few Hamas battalions left standing there.

Long-Range Expectations

 

The U.S. hopes the new deal be a step toward a postwar Gaza that would eventually lead to the creation of a Palestinian stPalestinian Aate. It wants Gaza to be governed by a revamped Palestinian Authority, which administers part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

But Israel wants to retain overall security control in the Gaza Strip and has rejected having world powers impose a state on it.

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