The Israeli Cabinet approved the "framework" of a deal between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group to end the war in Gaza in exchange for the release of all hostages, living and deceased, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Oct. 9.
In exchange for the hostages, Israel will release more than 2,000 prisoners, including 250 who are serving life sentences.
The Israel Defense Forces will then withdraw to a line that gives it control of 53 percent of the Gaza Strip.
Trump told reporters on Oct. 9 that he would be traveling to the Middle East on Sunday, hoping to be present when Hamas releases the last 20 living hostages the terrorist group has held since its land, sea, and air attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and oversee the implementation of the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.
The U.S. president said Israel also invited him to address the Knesset, the nation's parliament.
During White House press call on Thursday, senior administration officials described some of the efforts to broker a hostage exchange deal between Israel and Hamas.
"There was a negotiation in August that talked about a prisoner swap of—a hostage swap of 10 people. We took principles from that, principles from other hostage releases, put it all together," one official said.
The official said the U.S. team put those principles on a piece of paper while negotiating with the Qataris as intermediaries, discussing features of the cease-fire, including the decommissioning of arms, how a “technocratic government would come in and run the Gaza Strip,” and how the Israeli army would redeploy following the end of the war.
Celebrations Sweep Israel and Gaza
Even before the Israeli Cabinet had approved the framework of a deal to release the hostages and implement a cease-fire to end the war, celebrations had swept across both Israel and Gaza.In Gaza, Palestinians swarmed the streets of Khan Yunis, singing, dancing, and clapping in jubilation. In Israel, families of hostages expressed gratitude to Trump for his role in brokering the deal.
On Wednesday evening, families of multiple hostages still held by Hamas joined U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in a phone call with Trump.
Massive crowds also assembled at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv on Oct. 9 to celebrate the agreement. Israelis in Jerusalem expressed gratitude to both the U.S. and Israeli leaders.