Celebrations erupt after Israel and Hamas agree to phase one deal
Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a peace deal. Celebrations erupt in Gaza, Tel Aviv and Ramallah.
WASHINGTON – The Israeli government has approved the first phase of President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, paving the way for the release of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
“The government has just approved a framework for the release of all hostages, living and dead,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement.
The initial approval of the plan, a milestone in efforts to end the two-year war, came after several hours of discussion by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet on October 9 and presentations by Trump advisers Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.
Israel and Hamas reached a deal on October 8th, which President Trump announced on social media.
“This means that all hostages will soon be freed and that Israel will withdraw its forces to agreed fronts as a first step toward a strong, lasting, and everlasting peace,” President Trump wrote at the time.
The first phase of President Trump’s plan called for the release of Israeli hostages within 72 hours of an agreement being reached in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
Trump did not elaborate on what the second phase of the Oct. 9 deal would look like, but said the next step would follow the 20-point plan he shared.
“There’s going to be disarmament, there’s going to be withdrawal, there’s going to be a lot of things that are going to happen,” Trump said. “I think there is a possibility that there will eventually be peace in the Middle East.”
The agreement comes after repeated failed attempts to quell the two-year war, which began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages.
Israel’s response to the attack has drawn growing criticism around the world, including a United Nations report published in September that concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza. Israeli military operations in response have killed more than 66,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
At a White House Cabinet meeting, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the peace plan was a direct result of President Trump’s meetings with Arab leaders at the United Nations on September 23 and with Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House on September 29, during which Israeli leaders expressed support for the peace agreement.
Rubio said the hostages could be freed as early as this weekend.
President Trump plans to visit the Middle East in the coming days, and on October 9th said he would address the Israeli parliament if invited.
Release of the hostages is likely to begin on Monday, October 13, but they could be returned sooner, US officials said. Of the 48 hostages left in Gaza, 20 are believed to be alive.
President Trump said at a Cabinet meeting on October 9 that the United States knows where the majority of the living hostages are. Regarding the approximately 28 people who are believed to have died, the president said, “The bodies are the bigger problem, because some of the bodies are a little difficult to find.”
He also said the United States would work with “very wealthy countries” to rebuild Gaza. He refused to take a position on an independent Palestinian state, telling reporters at a cabinet meeting: “I don’t have a position. I’ll go with what they agree on.”
