President Donald Trump is expected to visit Israel over the weekend after Hamas finally agrees to release all hostages under his 20-point Gaza peace plan.
“The first stage of the deal, involving an immediate ceasefire and release of the remaining 20 living hostages as early as Saturday and as late as Monday, will be signed at 12 PM local time,” the Israeli TV channel i24NEWS reported.
President Trump would be addressing the Israeli parliament, marking the possible return of all remaining hostages, after two years of brutal and agonizing captivity in Gaza. “According to Israeli media, Trump will arrive [in] Israel on Sunday and will speak at the Knesset,” the broadcaster added. “An assessment by a source familiar with the details said Hamas will release the hostages ahead of Trump’s arrival.”
In exchange for 48 hostages, of which 20 are believed to be alive, Israel is expected to release around two thousand Palestinian terrorists, including 250 serving life sentences for murderous crimes.
Israeli medical services are gearing up to receive hostages suffering from trauma and starvation after more than two years of gruesome captivity in Hamas’s underground dungeons.
“Israel’s health system is preparing to receive hostages returning from Hamas captivity in Gaza, more than two years after they were abducted,” Israel’s Ynetnews reported Thursday. “The returnees are expected to be admitted to three major hospitals: Sourasky, Sheba and Rabin. In parallel, Soroka and Barzilai medical centers will remain designated facilities for urgent and complex cases.”
Hamas is obliged to release all hostages within 72 hours of accepting the deal.
Speaking to Israel’s Channel 12, prominent journalist Amit Segal described the deal in its current form as a mere hostage deal, lacking the prospect of a long-term settlement.
“There’s no phase two,” he said. “The deal signed now is a hostage release deal. It doesn’t imply anything about the future.” Phase one of the deal includes the hostages-for-terrorist exchange and partial withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
Segal doubted Hamas’s intention of giving up arms in accordance with President Trump’s 20-point plan, a call the terrorist group has repeatedly rejected. “The talks afterwards are based on the principle of Israeli withdrawal in return for demilitarization and dismantling,” he added. “Of course, we all assume that Hamas won’t disarm willingly, and the Emiratis and other international forces won’t achieve this quickly either.”
The Associated Press, on Thursday, outlined the Trump peace plan:
The Trump plan called for an immediate ceasefire and release of the 48 hostages that militants in Gaza still hold from their attack on Israel two years ago. Some 1,200 people were killed by Hamas-led militants, and 251 were taken hostage. Around 20 of the hostages are believed to still be alive. (…)Under the plan conceived by Trump, Israel would maintain an open-ended military presence inside Gaza, along its border with Israel. An international force, comprised largely of troops from Arab and Muslim countries, would be responsible for security inside Gaza. The U.S. would lead a massive internationally funded reconstruction effort in Gaza. (…)The plan also envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu opposes. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years to implement.
President Trump learned of the agreement on Wednesday during a White House roundtable upon receiving an urgent note from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was present in the room. NBC News described the historic moment:
Secretary of State Marco Rubio handed Trump a handwritten note during his roundtable event with influencers yesterday afternoon, which an Associated Press photographer captured as saying, “We are very close to a deal in the Middle East.””Need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first,” it read.”I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying that we’re very close to a deal in the Middle East, and they’re going to need me pretty quickly,” Trump told the room.
In his first interview after the announcement, President Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity that “this is more than Gaza. This is peace in the Middle East, an incredible thing.”
“The whole world came together, to be honest, so many countries that you wouldn’t have even thought of it, and they came together. The world has come together around this deal, and that’s something I would say that without that wouldn’t happen,” the president said in a 20-minute interview. “So many countries that you wouldn’t have thought of have wired their best wishes and their commitment to do whatever is necessary. The countries surrounding have all signed, I mean, they’re all signed up, and it’s been, it’s been really an amazing period of time.”
Following the White House roundtable, Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke with President Trump on the phone. Both leaders “had a very emotional and warm conversation, congratulating each other on the historic achievement of signing the agreement for the release of all the hostages,” the readout of the phone call released by the Israeli prime minister’s office said.
Prime Minister Netanyahu thanked President Trump and invited him to Israel. “The Prime Minister thanked President Trump for all his efforts and for his global leadership, and President Trump congratulated the Prime Minister for his determined leadership and the actions he led,” the readout said. “In addition, the Prime Minister invited President Trump to address the Knesset.”
After the phone call, Prime Minister Netanyahu released a one-line statement on his official website, saying: “With God’s help we will bring them all home.”
Meanwhile, the Israeli military has started making preparations to implement phase one of the Trump plan and receive the hostages.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Thursday morning that the “Chief of the General Staff [Major-General Eyal Zamir] instructed to prepare to lead the operation for the hostages’ return, which is expected to be conducted with sensitivity and professionalism.”
“The IDF welcomes the signing of the agreement for the return of the hostages, which was signed overnight,” the military said.
In light of Hamas’s history of deception, the Israeli ground troops were building up defensive positions. “During a situational assessment held overnight, the Chief of the General Staff instructed all forces, both on the front lines and in the rear areas, to prepare strong defenses and be ready for any scenario,” The IDF added. “Force deployments will be carried out in accordance with the directives of the political echelon and the stages of the agreement, with responsibility and a focus on the safety of our soldiers.”
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