The deal, approved by the Israeli cabinet on Saturday, goes into effect at 6.30am GMT on Sunday
Photo: Reuters file
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem congratulated Palestinians on Saturday for the Gaza ceasefire deal which was approved earlier by the Israeli cabinet and will go into effect at 6.30am GMT on Sunday.
Qassem added: "This deal, which was unchanged from what was proposed in May 2024, proves the persistence of resistance groups, which took what they wanted while Israel was not able to take what it sought," he said in his first comments since the deal was announced.
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire in a conflict parallel to the Gaza war in November. Qassem called on everyone to not test his group's patience against what he called Israel's violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon.
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Under the Gaza ceasefire deal, the three-stage truce starts with an initial six-week phase when hostages held by Hamas will be exchanged for prisoners detained by Israel.
Thirty-three of the 98 remaining Israeli hostages, including women, children, and men over 50, were due to be freed in this phase. Israel will release all Palestinian women and children under 19 in Israeli jails by the end of the first phase.
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