Trump: Israel and Hamas agreed on the first phase of the peace plan in Gaza
Israel and Hamas agreed to stop fighting in Gaza and release at least some hostages and prisoners in an agreement proposed by the Trump administration that would represent the biggest breakthrough in months in the devastating two-year war.
“This means that all hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw its forces to an agreed-upon line as the first steps toward a strong, lasting, and eternal peace,” President Donald Trump wrote on social media. “All parties will be treated fairly!”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on social media: “With God’s help, we will return them all to their homeland.” Hamas said it had agreed to an agreement that would lead to the end of the war in Gaza, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the entry of aid into Gaza, and the exchange of prisoners for hostages.
Hamas called on President Trump and the mediators to ensure that Israel implements all provisions of the agreement “without repudiation or delay in implementing what was agreed upon.”
Hamas plans to release all 20 living hostages this weekend, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press, while the Israeli military will begin withdrawing from the majority of the Gaza Strip.
While many questions remain, the two sides appear closer than they have been in several months to ending the war that has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives, destroyed much of the Gaza Strip and sparked other armed conflicts across the Middle East.
The war sparked global protests and brought widespread allegations of genocide, which Israel denies. Israel is more isolated than it has been in decades, and is deeply divided over the failure to return the hostages. The Palestinian dream of establishing an independent state seems further away than ever despite recent moves by major Western countries to recognize it.
The agreement was cemented in Egypt after days of negotiations centered on the peace plan supported by Trump, which he hopes will eventually lead to a permanent end to the war and achieve sustainable peace in the region.
The arrival on Wednesday of Mr. Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in Sharm el-Sheikh for the peace talks, which were also attended by Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, was a sign that negotiators are aiming to dig deeper into the conflict’s toughest issues. American plan To end the war. Mr. Netanyahu’s senior adviser, Ron Dermer, was also present at the talks.
Mr. Trump expressed optimism earlier in the day by saying he was considering a trip to the Middle East within days.
Another hint of a budding agreement came when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio passed Mr. Trump a note on White House stationery that read: “You need to approve the Social Truth post soon so you can announce the deal first.” Truth Social is the President’s favorite social media platform.
The memo prompted Mr. Trump to declare: “We are very close to reaching an agreement in the Middle East.”
The war began with a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people, many of them civilians, and the taking of 251 hostages. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead, devastated Gaza, and turned world politics upside down.
This will be the third ceasefire reached since the beginning of the war. The first, in November 2023, saw the release of more than 100 hostages, most of them women and children, in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners before its collapse. In the second operation, in January and February of this year, Palestinian militants released 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight others in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Israel He ended the ceasefire in March By surprise bombing.
A growing number of experts, including these Commissioned by a United Nations bodyThey said the Israeli attack on Gaza amounted to genocide, an accusation Israel denies. More than 67,000 Palestinians were killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 were injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
The ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants but says about half of those killed were women and children, is part of the Hamas-run government. The United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.
The ministry said on Wednesday that the bodies of 10 people killed in the Israeli raids were transferred to local hospitals during the past 24 hours. In the Gaza Strip, where Much of the territory is in ruinsThe Palestinians were in dire need of a breakthrough. Thousands of people fleeing the recent Israeli ground offensive in northern Gaza and Gaza City have set up makeshift tents along the beach in the central part of the Strip, sometimes using blankets for shelter.
Sarah Rayhan, a displaced woman from Jabalia, said she prays for an end to the war.
She said: “I hope we can return to our places and homes even if there are no homes.” “Being on our land is our greatest happiness.”
This article is from the Associated Press. Mr. Magdy reported from Cairo and Mr. Madanek reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.