News at glance: Gaza ceasefire and prisoner hostage swaps
- World leaders, led by US President Donald Trump, signed a Gaza ceasefire accord at a summit in Egypt, positioning the deal as the next phase of regional de-escalation.
- Hours earlier in Jerusalem, Trump said the agreement marked a “historic dawn of a new Middle East.”
- Under the US brokered terms, Hamas returned the last 20 Israeli hostages and transferred four bodies to Israeli authorities.
- Israel, in turn, freed roughly 2,000 Palestinians ,a mix of prisoners and detainees from Gaza, as part of the exchange.
- Emotional reunions unfolded in Israeli hospitals and public squares, while released Palestinians were welcomed by families in the West Bank and by large crowds in Gaza.
TEL AVIV: First batch of Israeli and Palestinian hostages have been released as the US-brokered ceasefire entered a tense new phase Monday morning, delivering both emotional relief and diplomatic controversy across the region.
President Donald Trump landed at Ben Gurion Airport, where he was welcomed by top Israeli officials, just hours after the first groups of Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners were exchanged.
Seven Israeli captives, released by Hamas, were successfully transferred to the Israeli army via the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), marking a crucial implementation of the agreement’s first stage.
Addressing the Israeli Knesset, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began his speech by praising US President Donald Trump, calling him “the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House.”
“No American president has done more for Israel,” Netanyahu said, crediting Trump’s “pivotal leadership” for securing global support for a peace proposal.
He described the plan as one that “will bring our hostages home, end the war by achieving all our objectives, and open the door to a historic expansion of peace in our region and beyond.”
“Mr. President, you are committed to this peace, I am committed to this peace, and together we will achieve it,” he added.
NETANYAHU WILL NOT ATTEND TODAY’S EGYPT SUMMIT
Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the prime minister will not attend the Egypt summit scheduled for later today.
According to a statement on X, “Prime Minister Netanyahu was invited by President Trump to attend the conference in Egypt but expressed his inability to participate due to the proximity of the event to the start of the holiday.”
Earlier, both the White House and Egyptian presidency had announced that Netanyahu would be among the attendees.
