Biden 'deeply satisfied this day has finally come'
President Joe Biden confirmed the Hamas-Israel ceasefire deal, hailing “many months of intensive diplomacy” by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar.
“My diplomacy never ceased in their efforts to get this done,” the outgoing president said in a statement.
In subsequent on-camera remarks, Biden said he was “deeply satisfied this day has finally come, for the sake of the people of Israel and the families waiting in agony, and for the sake of the innocent people in Gaza, who suffered unimaginable devastation because of the war.”
Biden administration officials say agreement has been reached
Two senior administration officials say the hostage deal and cease fire agreement has been reached.
President Joe Biden is expected to speak publicly on the deal, the source said.
Ceasefire highlights differences in Trump and Biden's leadership
NBC News' Kelly O'Donnell reports on White House involvement in the many months of negotiation leading up to the ceasefire deal and how both the Biden and Trump administrations wanted to see a resolution as soon as possible.
Biden says deal was 'unanimously' endorsed by Security Council in May
President Joe Biden confirmed the ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel, saying it is based on the May 2024 outline that was "unanimously" endorsed by the United Nations Security Council.
"It is long past time for the fighting to end and the work of building peace and security to begin," Biden said in a statement today. "I am also thinking of the American families, three of whom have living hostages in Gaza and four awaiting return of remains after what has been the most horrible ordeal imaginable."
The president credited the work of numerous negotiators, including Egypt and Qatar, and "extreme pressure" on Hamas, particularly after a ceasefire in Lebanon.
"My diplomacy never ceased in their efforts to get this done," Biden said.
Hostage family forum asks for respect amid 'profound anxiety and emotion'
Families of hostages in Gaza are asking for "space" regarding news of the ceasefire deal and providing updates through the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the organization said.
"The hours ahead will be filled with profound anxiety and emotion for all involved," the forum said in a statement.
Though news broke that Israel and Hamas have agreed to a deal, Israel's Cabinet must approve the deal before it can go into effect. The country's Supreme Court has to then allow 24 hours to permit an appeal, meaning the earliest a ceasefire could go into effect would be Friday.
Deal is the same as the one discussed in May, senior Hamas official tells NBC News
A senior Hamas official said the militant group was "very happy" to secure the deal but suggested it was very similar to one discussed back in May.
Basem Naim confirmed to NBC News in a statement that Hamas had agreed to the current deal.
But he said that "both parties have lost thousands of innocent civilians," because of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "and his government political games.”
Netanyahu's office says there are 'unresolved clauses' in deal
The agreement between Hamas and Israel still has some issues to be ironed out, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.
“There are still several unresolved clauses in the outline, and we hope that the details will be finalized tonight,” his office said in a statement.
The statement also touted what it characterized as a compromise on Hamas’ part.
“Hamas has backed down on its demand at the last minute to change the deployment of forces on” the Philadelphi Corridor, a the narrow strip of land between Gaza and Egypt, according to the statement.
Trump takes credit for ceasefire agreement
President-elect Donald Trump suggested today that the deal was reached because his election win “signaled to the world” that he would seek peace.
“I am thrilled American and Israeli hostages will be returning home to be reunited with their families and loved ones,” he wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social.
He said that his team had “achieved so much without even being in the White House."
He added that his national security team and Steve Witkoff, his special envoy to the Middle East, would “continue to work closely with Israel and our allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven.”
News of deal bittersweet for relative of slain hostage
His cousin Carmel Gat will not be one of the hostages to be freed, but Gil Dickmann told NBC News today that it was “very exciting to see that finally hostages are gonna come home.” Still, the news was bittersweet.
Gat, 40, was kidnapped from her parents’ home in kibbutz Be’eri. An occupational therapist from Tel Aviv, she was called a “guardian angel” by some of the hostages who were freed, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, an advocacy group for those held captive.
Her body was recovered in Gaza by the Israeli military in August.
Dickmann said it was “really sad to know that Carmel could have and should have been among them but a deal didn’t come in time and she was murdered in captivity.”
He also thanked President-elect Donald Trump for using his influence to secure the deal. “But this is only the beginning,” Dickmann added. “We urge him and call him to make sure that the Trump Deal doesn’t stop, and right after stage one we’ll have stage two releasing all the hostages. Leave no one behind.”
Israelis and Gazans react to news of deal
People in Tel Aviv react to the reports of a possible hostage release deal.
People celebrate in Khan Yunis, Gaza.