The agreement, which must still be approved by the Israeli cabinet, incited joy in the Gaza Strip and Israel, even as some feared that it could fall apart.

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

The Gaza Strip ceasefire should begin on Sunday as planned, despite the need for negotiators to tie up a "loose end" at the last minute, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.

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.

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

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.

Qatar says it is hopeful that a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal could be agreed "very soon", with negotiators from Israel and Hamas beginning a "final stage" of indirect talks in Doha.

Hamas has accepted a draft agreement for a Gaza ceasefire and the release of dozens of hostages. Newsweek's live blog is closed.

Strikes on Gaza City and northern Gaza killed at least 32 people ... Reporting by Andrew Mills in Doha, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo, Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem, Clauda Tanios and Nayera Abdallah in Dubai; additional reporting by James Mackenzie and Emily ...

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 President-elect Donald Trump are both claiming credit for Israel and Hamas agreeing to a ceasefire deal in Gaza after the White House brought Trump's Middle East envoy into negotiations that have dragged on for months.

Mediators gave Israel and Hamas a final draft of a deal on Monday to end the war in Gaza, an official briefed on the negotiations said, after a midnight breakthrough in talks attended by envoys of both U.S. President Joe Biden and president-elect Donald Trump.