ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Thursday described a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, brokered by the US, Qatar, and Egypt as a “defeat” for Israel, and a “victory” for Palestinians.

"The end of the war and the imposition of a ceasefire... is a clear victory and a great victory for Palestine and a bigger defeat for the monstrous Zionist regime," the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement.

Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also welcomed the deal, saying the truce "made the Zionist regime fail in achieving its strategic goal."

Ghalibaf added that action will have to be taken to "punish the criminal regime and heal the wounds of the Palestinian nation."

Israel and Hamas on Wednesday reached a ceasefire and hostage release agreement following high-level negotiations in Doha.

As news spread that a ceasefire and hostage release deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas, Palestinians poured into streets across the country, including war-ravaged Gaza, chanting and embracing in joy. 

The ceasefire will take effect on Sunday and involve the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. The terms of a broader peace deal would be finalized once the first phase of the ceasefire has concluded.