The ceasefire agreement — just the second achieved during the war — will go into effect Sunday, Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

The United Nations says that it could take more than 350 years to rebuild if the blockade remains.

The U.N. estimates that more than 50 million tons of debris now covers Gaza's streets and would take over 15 years to clear.

The ceasefire agreement, reached with Hamas, provides for the swap of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners and a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The full Israeli cabinet passed the agreement during a meeting that continued into the Jewish Sabbath, setting up the first reprieve in Gaza in over a year.

Israel’s security Cabinet recommended approval of the Gaza cease-fire. The deal would pause the war with Hamas and release dozens of hostages.

Israeli strikes killed at least 86 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip since the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Wednesday, officials said.

Israel's cabinet approved a ceasefire deal with Hamas, involving the release of hostages in Gaza. The agreement, effective Sunday, includes a phased exchange of hostages and prisoners.

The Israeli cabinet approved the deal Friday, and the full cabinet is expected to convene later in the day to vote on it.

Hamas is a Palestinian armed group and political movement in the Gaza Strip. On 7 October 2023 it attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages. This triggered a massive Israeli military offensive in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday accused Hamas of backing out of a cease-fire deal to release hostages and bring a pause to more than a year of fighting.