Israeli hostages could be released as soon as Monday as Gaza ceasefire takes effect

Hamas is expected to release 20 Israeli hostages on Sunday or Monday as the Gaza ceasefire agreement takes effect, marking a potential turning point in a devastating conflict that has killed over 67,000 Palestinians.

Egypt’s President Sisi confirmed an agreement has been reached to implement a ceasefire and end the war in Gaza after two years of suffering, in accordance with US President Trump’s plan.

Egyptian state television al-Qahera news reported that the agreement for the first phase of Trump’s plan took effect on Thursday at 12:00. However, Netanyahu’s office stated that the ceasefire will not take effect until the agreement is ratified on Thursday evening by the Israeli government.

Hamas expected to release 20 Israeli hostages Sunday or Monday

Netanyahu is expected to convene the security cabinet at 6pm—a select group of ministers who decide on key defence, security and foreign policy matters—to discuss the agreement, before it is put to a vote by the full cabinet. Approval is considered almost certain.

Israel’s army will complete the first part of a partial withdrawal from the enclave within 24 hours of signing the agreement, a source briefed on the agreement’s details said.

Forty-eight hostages currently remain in Hamas’s captivity, 20 of whom are believed to be still alive. Israeli media reports that Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law and former adviser Jared Kushner are expected in Israel tonight.

Up to 197,000 buildings destroyed, entire towns levelled

As many as 197,000 buildings have been damaged or destroyed during the war, according to estimates in a damage analysis of Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite data by Corey Scher and Jamon Van Den Hoek of Oregon State University’s Conflict Ecology lab, shared with ABC News.

According to Hebrew University mapping from July 2025, 89% of the buildings in Rafah, 84% of the buildings in the northern Gaza Strip and 78% of the buildings in Gaza City have been completely or partially destroyed.

Two towns in Gaza have been completely levelled, with satellite images showing no buildings left standing in Umm al-Nasser and Al-Mughraqa. Umm al-Nasser, a Bedouin town in the far north of Gaza with just under 5,000 residents, was flattened by Israeli forces between 29 and 31 March 2025, according to ABC News analysis of satellite images.

An ABC News visual analysis shows that 88% of Gaza’s schools are destroyed or damaged, with at least 58%—or 318 school buildings—at least partially destroyed. The United Nations has estimated that reconstruction in the territory would take up to 15 years and cost as much as $50 billion.

Famine confirmed in Gaza Governorate, expanding to other areas

As of August 2025, famine with reasonable evidence has been confirmed in Gaza Governorate, with more than half a million people in the Gaza Strip facing catastrophic conditions characterised by starvation, destitution and death.

Between mid-August and the end of September 2025, conditions are expected to further worsen with famine projected to expand to Deir al-Balah and Khan Yunis, with nearly a third of the population—641,000 people—expected to face catastrophic conditions.

Acute malnutrition is projected to continue worsening rapidly, with at least 132,000 children under five expected to suffer from acute malnutrition through June 2026—double the IPC estimates from May 2025.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated the famine was “a man-made disaster, a moral indictment—and a failure of humanity itself”.

UN experts and genocide scholars determine Israel committed genocide

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory concluded that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, urging Israel and all states to fulfil their legal obligations under international law to end the genocide and punish those responsible.

In August 2025, the International Association of Genocide Scholars—the largest professional organisation of scholars studying genocide with around 500 members worldwide—stated that Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide, with 86% of those who voted supporting the resolution.