Hamas Agrees to Tentative Deal to Free 50 Hostages: Report

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Tentative deal for 50 prisoners

Hamas agreed to free at least 50 women and children held captive in Gaza in exchange for a multi-day pause in fighting and an increase in aid, The Washington Post reported, citing an Arab diplomat.

Israel had yet to accept the deal, which would allegedly involve the release of some Palestinians jailed in Israel. It is expected to reach a decision sometime Wednesday.

While Israel and U.S. leaders had balked at a ceasefire in the conflict, a three-to-five-day pause in the fighting appears to be a possibility. Israel bombarded Gaza in recent weeks in a campaign that has killed thousands, left many more without access to resources or care and decimated hospitals in the region.

American officials had signaled on Wednesday that such a deal was coming to fruition, with a number of reports suggesting that the two sides were “close” to a deal.

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