There are still some significant details to be worked out.

But as of today, negotiators for Hamas and Israel have reached a ceasefire agreement

that commits to returning the remaining Israeli hostages and ultimately ending

the 15-month-long war in Gaza that has killed at least 46,000 people.

People took to the streets in both Israel and Gaza to celebrate the deal after it was announced.

The agreement will still need to be ratified by the Israeli cabinet before it can be implemented,

and the deal, as outlined so far, is nearly identical to the one outlined by the Biden administration last May.

It is said to play out in three phases.

The first phase will take place over the next six weeks, beginning Sunday with a full and complete ceasefire between the two sides.

That will be followed by Hamas, releasing dozens of Israeli hostages, including women, the elderly, and the wounded, while Israel will release hundreds of

Palestinian prisoners. NBC News reports that two of the Israeli hostages released in the first rounds

will be American Sagi Dekyll and Keith Siegel. During this phase, Israeli forces are expected to

withdraw from populated areas of Gaza. Humanitarian aid is

expected to surge into Gaza, and Palestinians should be allowed to return to their home neighborhoods.

Phase two of this deal will be dedicated to reaching a permanent end to the war, and during this phase,

the two sides will negotiate an exchange for the remaining hostages

who were not released in phase one. And all Israeli forces are expected to withdraw from Gaza.

Now, in phase three of the agreement, NBC News reports that the remains of the hostages who died in

Hamas' custody are expected to be returned to their

families and a, quote, major reconstruction plan is expected to begin. So there is a lot to be

determined here, but it is still potentially a major breakthrough in a bloody and protracted war.

Less than half an hour after negotiations made this deal,

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