The agreement is set to halt a 15-month-old war between Israel and Hamas that has decimated the Strip, killed nearly 47,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis, and destabilised the Middle East.

The truce will go into effect on Sunday. Hamas will release 33 hostages in waves over six weeks. They’ll include women, children, men over age 50 and sick or wounded people. About 100 hostages remain in Gaza, although about 35 are believed to be dead.

The Israeli government ratified the Gaza ceasefire and hostage return deal, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said, after a cabinet meeting that lasted more than six hours and ended in the early hours of Saturday.