ISTANBUL

The Israeli government began a meeting Thursday to vote on a ceasefire and hostage release agreement for the Gaza Strip, according to a report by the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

The session opened with a security briefing by Israeli army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, it said.

Israeli media reported that US President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner entered the meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after concluding talks.

The meeting followed hours of delay after a Security Cabinet session ended without a vote.

Later, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office shared a video of Netanyahu at the government meeting for the approval of the hostage release framework together with Witkoff and Kushner.

"We couldn't have achieved it without the extraordinary help of President Trump and his team, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner," Netanyahu said, adding they worked "tirelessly."

Thanking Witkoff and Kushner, Netanyahu said they worked "around the clock."

"Not only worked – I think you put in your brains and your hearts. We know that it's for the benefit of Israel and the US, for the benefit of decent people everywhere," he added.

Kushner said bringing the hostages home has been a priority for Trump for a "very, very long time."

"We've all worked very tirelessly to do that," he added.

Witkoff said Trump believes that Netanyahu made "some very, very difficult calls."

The Israeli Cabinet approved the deal early Friday.

"The government has just now approved the framework for the release of all of the hostages – the living and the deceased," it said.

The ceasefire agreement was announced at dawn Thursday following four days of indirect negotiations between the Palestinian group Hamas and Israel in Egypt’s Red Sea city of Sharm el-Sheikh, with mediation from Türkiye, Egypt, Qatar and the US.

On Sept. 29, Trump unveiled a 20-point plan for Gaza that includes the release of all Israeli captives in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, a permanent ceasefire, and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip.

Phase two of the plan calls for establishing a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas’ participation, the formation of a security force made up of Palestinians and troops from Arab and Islamic countries, and the disarmament of Hamas. It also stipulates Arab and Islamic funding for the new administration and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, with limited participation from the Palestinian Authority.

Arab and Muslim countries have welcomed the plan, but some officials have also said that many details in it need discussion and negotiations to be fully implemented.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed nearly 67,200 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it uninhabitable.

*Diyar Guldogan from Washington, DC contributed to this report