Qatar’s prime minister on Wednesday announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, pausing the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clearing the way for dozens of Israeli hostages to go home.

Mediator Qatar said Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza starting on Sunday and a hostage and prisoner exchange after 15 months of war. Thirty-three Israeli hostages will be released in the first phase of the agreement that could become a “permanent ceasefire”,

The first phase, spanning a 42-day ceasefire, would see the exchange of 33 Israeli hostages in Gaza for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, U.S. officials said.