Sharm el Sheikh. Israel said Thursday that all parties signed the final version of the first phase of the agreement with Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages, aiming to end two years of war.

This agreement between Israel and Hamas was forged from a 20-point plan proposed by US President Donald Trump and provides for the release of the remaining Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinians.

Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian reported that all parties signed the final version of the agreement for the first phase of the plan in Egypt, following indirect negotiations in the tourist resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, mediated by the United States, Qatar, and Turkey.

The proposal must receive approval from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet at 3:00 p.m. GMT, following a meeting with his security cabinet an hour earlier.

In Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, a devastated territory where famine is rampant according to the UN, Palestinians applauded, cheered, and danced as the agreement was announced, according to AFP footage.

"Despite all the deaths and the loss of loved ones, today we are happy after the ceasefire. Despite the sadness and despite everything, we are happy," said Aiman al-Najar.

At Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, people also hugged and congratulated each other after the announcement, which gives hope for the return of the approximately 20 hostages who are still alive.

Uncertainty remains over other issues raised by the US president, such as the disarmament of Hamas and the possibility of Gaza being governed after the war by a transitional authority headed by himself.

The hostages still alive after two years of captivity in Gaza since the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, which triggered the war, will be released"depending on conditions on the ground," said a source from the Palestinian Islamist movement.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed"a great day for Israel" and declared that Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

Israel expects Trump visit on Sunday

The Israeli presidency said it expects Trump to visit Jerusalem on Sunday.

Israel announced that the ceasefire will begin within 24 hours of approval by the Israeli government's security cabinet, a fragile coalition led by Netanyahu's Likud party but dependent on other far-right parties.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a key ally of the Religious Zionism party, has already indicated that he will not support the agreement.

The pact seeks to end two years of war in Gaza, a conflict that erupted with the Hamas attack on Israeli territory on October 7, 2023, which left 1,219 dead, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data.

In response, Israel launched an offensive that left at least 67,183 dead in Gaza, according to figures from the Hamas government's Health Ministry, considered reliable by the UN.

Israeli government spokeswoman said prominent Palestinian prisoner Marwan Barghouti, a prominent member of Fatah, the Palestinian faction rivaling Hamas, will not be part of the swap.

Bombing continues in Gaza

Following the announcement, the Gaza Civil Defense reported that Israeli bombing continued.

To make the exchange happen, the Israeli army announced it is preparing to withdraw its troops from the Gaza Strip, of which it controls approximately 75 percent.

Trump announced on his Truth Social network that"ALL hostages will soon be released and Israel will withdraw its troops to an agreed-upon line, as the first steps toward a strong, lasting, and everlasting peace."

Of the 251 people kidnapped by the Islamist movement in its 2023 attack, 47 remain in Gaza, 25 of whom have died, according to the Israeli military.

The Hostage Families Forum, the main organization of families of hostages, invited the US president to meet with their representatives when he travels to Israel.

400 aid trucks a day

Hamas called on Trump to pressure Israel to fully implement the agreement.

According to a source within the Islamist movement, at least 400 trucks of humanitarian aid are expected to enter the Strip each day during the first five days of the ceasefire.

The Egyptian Red Crescent said Thursday that 153 trucks carrying humanitarian aid are on their way to the Gaza Strip.

The UN-backed Integrated Food Security Classification (IPC) declared a state of famine in Gaza, and a UN agency attributed the situation to"systematic Israeli obstruction," a claim denied by the Jewish state.

Nearly one in six children in Gaza is suffering from acute malnutrition due to the war, according to a study published in The Lancet and funded by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).