Israel’s ceasefire deal with Hamas brings hope, but the bombing of Gaza continues as the hostages’ families hold their breath.

I agreement between Israel and Hamas The freeze on Gaza and the immediate release of hostages brought joy to thousands of people in the devastated Palestinian territory, but there and on the streets of Israel, hope was still tempered by anxiety on Thursday morning. The unrest was fueled by increased bloodshed in Gaza, and the doubts expressed by the Israeli leader about the strength of the agreement announced the previous night.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a “last-minute crisis” with Hamas was delaying Israel’s final ratification of the long-sought deal. Israeli media reports suggested the delay could be down to Netanyahu trying to buy time to work with nationalists in his cabinet who have always been fiercely opposed to any deal with Hamas.

“We fully expect the agreement to go ahead as described yesterday, and on the timeline we set, so implementation will begin as soon as Sunday with a ceasefire and the release of the first hostages,” said US Deputy National Security Advisor Jonathan Finer. On Thursday on “CBS Mornings,” it acknowledges “a collection of details on the use and conditions that will be challenging during the implementation of this agreement, which will be passed on to the next administration.”

Finer said President Biden spoke with Netanyahu “twice in the last few days, including yesterday after the agreement in Doha.”

The deal is fragile, and its organization will be very complicated – even with Hamas getting the hostages safely to the handover point will present major security challenges.

The deal won’t go into effect until Sunday, and as the Israeli military builds up attack on Gaza instead of easing them out after the deal — and none of the roughly 100 hostages expected to return home for days — no one who spoke to CBS News on either side of the border seemed ready to take the peace that came as a surprise for granted. the horizon.

In Gaza, “a new chance for life”

For Gazans, it was very good news. Hearing that the incessant bombing of their cities and towns would stop on Sunday brought great relief and joy.

A little boy who spoke to a CBS News team in the area summed it up in three words: “We’re going home!”

Mahmood Kurdia, who lived south of the town of Khan Younis after being forced to leave his home in northern Gaza, said he can’t wait to return, even though he knows there is nothing he can return to.

“I want to go back home to see my family, my neighbors and my house. Even though my house is in ruins, I still want to see it. I want to take out the rubble and put my tent on top of the ruins and tell Israel that I’m back,” he told CBS News on Wednesday.

However, like all people, he was well aware that peace, if it will come, is still three days away.

Israel appeared to be intensifying its strikes on Wednesday evening, killing more than 70 people amid a cease-fire agreement announced on Thursday morning, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry and the Enclave Civil Defense rescue center. Both organizations told CBS News that the dead included 21 children and 24 women.

Still, Kurdia couldn’t help but cling to hope.

“This news means a new chance to live,” he said. “This means a new chance for us to live and watch our children live, grow and get an education. It’s just a new hope for survival. This is the cease-fire agreement we hope to get.”

Cousin of Israeli hostage is happy – but “not breathing”

In Tel Aviv, a small crowd gathered Wednesday night at the site where protesters, week after week, demand that the Israeli government bring the remaining hostages home.

Yifat Kalderon was among them. His cousin Ofer was among the 251 people kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, a terrorist attack that saw soldiers kill around 1,200 people, and sparked a war that has raged for almost 480 days.

Ofer was among dozens of people kidnapped by gunmen who stormed Kibbutz Nir Oz. In more than 50 years, he is to be among the hostages released by Hamas in the first phase of a three-phase ceasefire agreement.

But when asked if he felt comfortable Wednesday night, Kalderon made it clear that the emotions would have to wait.

“No,” she said. “I will feel a great relief when it is done. When will we find all the 90-98 hostages alive and bring the dead back home.”

As the bombs continued to fall in Gaza and there was very little sign of any new level of trust between Israel and Hamas, the families of the hostages across Israel were left waiting, and worried about everything that could go wrong.

“I’m not saying I’m not happy,” Kalderon said. “But I’m trying, you know, to take care of myself, not to, you know, I don’t want to – I want to see them, first. Until I see them cross the road. the border… I won’t believe anything.”

“I’m not breathing until then – we’re going to bring them all home.”