Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have finally relented. After more than a year of refusing to agree to an end to the war in Gaza, he is now pushing through a ceasefire that – mediators insist – will do just that.

If approved by the full cabinet Friday, the three-stage ceasefire plan will see Hamas release 33 Israeli hostages, including all women, children and men over 50, and Israel will release all Palestinian women and children under 19 detained in Israeli jails within the first six-week phase.

Under the deal, bitterly opposed by some cabinet hardliners, a six-week ceasefire is due to take effect on Sunday, with the first of a series of hostage-for-prisoner exchanges that could open the way to ending the 15-month war in Gaza.