After a 15-month genocide, a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect Jan. 19. Both parties agreed to the release of 200 Palestinian prisoners and four female Israeli soldiers as part of the ceasefire conditions. The deal’s main agenda was to establish an end to the current conflict and release hostages.
The deal followed months of negotiations, protests and international scrutiny. The deal’s contingencies add risk to the ceasefire being successful. The terms outlined in the deal are similar to the previous deal presented to the Biden administration this past May. The new deal offered the release of the hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners being released and Israeli forces gradually withdrawing from the Gaza Strip, which has been under siege since 2023.
The four Israeli soldiers released were identified as Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa and Naama Levy. The soldiers were captured during the Hamas-led Oct. 7. attack. Hamas surrendered the Israeli soldiers to the Red Cross, who then returned the soldiers to their families. The families expressed joy and relief at seeing their loved ones again.
The ceasefire is a three-phase agreement process.
The first phase will last from Jan. 19 to March 5, 2025. During this initial period, all conflict will stop. Hamas is expected to release a total of 33 hostages which includes women, female soldiers, elderly men and hostages who need medical attention.
During the second phase, Israel is expected to release 1,900 Palestinian prisoners and reduce their military presence in areas populated with Palestinian civilians. Palestinians who have been displaced previously will be allowed back in their neighborhoods and aid lorries will be allowed into Gaza each day. Lastly, Israeli troops will fully withdraw from Gaza.
The third and final phase of the ceasefire involves negotiating both the return of the bodies of deceased hostages, as well as what it will look like for Gaza to rebuild.
Sadie Nelson, a fourth-year history and women, gender & sexuality studies double major, expressed both excitement and apprehension over the ceasefire agreement.
“I am very nervous to see how it plays out,” Nelson said. “At the same time, I think it’s important to emphasize the joy and the chance for so many people on the ground in Gaza.”
The first released group of 200 Palestinian prisoners were welcomed and embraced by loved ones and onlookers. The families of the prisoners were waiting anxiously by the side of the road as buses carrying the prisoners left the Israeli Ofer military prison in the occupied West Bank. Families embraced their loved ones in the street as crowds formed around the buses to carry the prisoners on their shoulders. The ceasefire announcement echoed throughout the Middle East, sparking street celebrations.
Lubna Alzaroo, a part-time environmental studies professor at the University of Washington who grew up in Hebron, Palestine, shared her feelings about the ceasefire.
“There’s some relief but a lot of skepticism, I think that’s the main thing. Even today, I was talking to my parents back in Palestine, and they had a lot of skepticism. They asked me if I was happy about the ceasefire. I was like, yeah, obviously, and then they were saying, ‘Yeah, but we don’t know if it’s even going to last, this ceasefire,’” Alzaroo said.
Alzaroo brought up how this skepticism stems from past deals that Israel has made with Palestine.
“They constantly break these deals,” Alzaroo said.
Even amid uncertainty about Israel’s willingness to honor the terms, Alzaroo expressed that this is a welcomed change in the conflict. She hopes that this time will be used to grieve loved ones and rebuild Gaza.
Nova Robinson, associate professor of history and international studies and director of women, gender & sexuality studies, who specializes in Middle Eastern studies, shared some similar remarks on Gaza’s current state.
“We need to be thinking about how we can provide the many forms of aid that the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank need to rebuild their lives and to be guaranteed lives full of dignity that they are guaranteed under international human rights law,” Robinson said.
She mentioned material aid, access to psychological resources, counseling, doctors and teachers as some of the resources needed to help rebuild during this time.
According to Robinson, there is hope that Israel will maintain the conditions of the ceasefire.
“This ceasefire does feel like it might stick in a different way in large part, because there’s been a change in administration in the United States to a government that is ultimately more favorable to Israel than the Biden administration,” Robinson said.
According to Nelson, it is now more important than ever for activist momentum to continue in the U.S.
“For students or anyone who may care, now, especially, is the time to continue putting pressure in the United States on our own systems which support Israel. I mean, it would not be possible to do their genocide without the support from the U.S.,” Nelson said.
A ceasefire between Hamas and Israel has been long awaited by both sides to help bring loved ones back together and help recover. Although the path forward is fraught with uncertainty, this ceasefire marks a definitive push toward peace after months of ongoing conflict.
