(NewsNation) — Israel and Hamas have agreed to a temporary cease-fire that will see the release of some 50 hostages who were taken during the Oct. 7 attack carried out by Hamas militants.

In exchange, Israel will release 150 Palestinian prisoners being held.

Hamas will release 50 of its approximately 240 hostages over the course of those four days, the Israeli government announced, starting with women and children. The cease-fire would then extend an additional day for every 10 hostages released.

“The Government of Israel is obligated to return home all of the hostages,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement. “The Government of Israel, the IDF and the security services will continue the war in order to return home all of the hostages, complete the elimination of Hamas and ensure that there will be no new threat to the State of Israel from Gaza.”

Israel’s government approved the deal early Wednesday local time, and the start of the hostage release will be announced within 24 hours. Three Americans — two women and a child about to turn 4 years old — could potentially be among those initially released.

Israel and the U.S. have been in talks for weeks, with Qatar acting as an intermediary in discussions with Hamas. Roughly 240 people were taken hostage during the Oct. 7 attack, and 33 of those being held are believed to be children. Many of those held are also foreign nationals or dual citizens who hold passports from other countries.

“The State of Qatar affirms its commitment to ongoing diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions, stop the bloodshed, and protect civilians,” the country said in a statement announcing the deal. “In this regard, the State of Qatar appreciates the efforts of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the United States of America in reaching this agreement.”

Hamas previously released four hostages: an American mother and daughter, Judith and Natalie Raanan, and two elderly Israeli women, Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yocheved Lifshitz, 85. Israeli special forces rescued a sixth hostage, a member of the military, Pvt. Ori Megidish. Two hostages, 19-year-old soldier Noa Marciano and 65-year-old Yehudit Weiss, were found dead by Israeli forces.

Previous efforts at a deal have fallen through. President Joe Biden and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani expressed optimism in recent days, hinting the deal was on the horizon even as Israeli leaders remained more cautious in their statements until the final deal was announced.

According to senior administration officials, Biden spoke with the emir of Qatar while he was in San Francisco during the APEC summit in an effort to finalize the deal.

“As President, I have no higher priority than ensuring the safety of Americans held hostage around the world. That’s why—from the earliest moments of Hamas’s brutal assault—my national security team and I have worked closely with regional partners to do everything possible to secure the release of our fellow citizens,” Biden said in a statement Tuesday night. “We saw the first results of that effort in late October, when two Americans were reunited with their loved ones. Today’s deal should bring home additional American hostages, and I will not stop until they are all released.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously resisted calls to negotiate with Hamas as well as calls for a cease-fire without the release of hostages. That demand is made more difficult by the fact that Hamas is not the only group holding captives, with some of the hostages held by a separate group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Netanyahu faced pressure from the families of those held to focus on freeing the captives. Some families have expressed fear that Israel’s military actions in Gaza could result in the deaths of hostages.

U.S. and Israeli officials are hopeful that this first release of hostages will result in subsequent releases until all hostages are returned.

Parties involved in the negotiations said the cease-fire will allow for the entry of “hundreds of trucks” of humanitarian aid into Gaza, including fuel. Israel had been reluctant to let in fuel, claiming it would be used by Hamas for military purposes. Aid groups and hospital staff say it’s needed to keep hospitals running and transport aid throughout the Gaza Strip.

Ahead of the Israeli cabinet vote approving the deal, which came after a six-hour meeting stretching into the early morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war against Hamas would resume after the truce expires.

“We are at war, and we will continue the war,” he said. “We will continue until we achieve all our goals.”

The Hill and The Associated Press contributed to this report.