Israel and Hamas have agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza, according to a senior U.S. official. The settlement comes more than 15 months after war broke out following terror attacks in Israel on October 7th of 2023.

The prime minister of Qatar Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani was instrumental in brokering the peace deal, which promises the release of 33 hostages held by Hamas in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The deal will see a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza during an initial six-week ceasefire phase.

The deal, which was a combined effort between Qatar, Egypt, and the U.S., is expected to pave the way for thousands of Palestinian refugees to return to northern Gaza. More than 40,000 civilians and combatants have been killed in Gaza since the October 2023 attacks on Israel that took the lives of 1,200 people.

President-elect Trump celebrated the news in a Wednesday morning post to Truth Social.