President Donald Trump visited Israel and Egypt on Oct. 13 to mark the first phase of a cease-fire deal that saw the Hamas terrorist group release living hostages in exchange for Israel's release of Palestinian detainees.
The cease-fire deal could bring about the end of more than two years of fighting, which began after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed in that attack, and Hamas fighters took 251 more to Gaza as hostages.
Gaza’s health ministry, which operates under the auspices of a Hamas-controlled territorial government, has reported more than 67,000 Gazans killed during Israel’s military campaign of the past two years. The ministry does not differentiate between combatants and non-combatants, and exact casualty figures could not be verified.
As he addressed leaders from around the region, Trump said the next steps in the Gaza cease-fire process are in the works, and cast the moment as “the end of an age of terror and death and the beginning of the age of faith and hope.”
Hostages Freed
The remaining 20 Israeli hostages taken captive by Hamas terrorists more than two years ago were released and reunited with their families on Oct. 13.“After two harrowing years in darkness and captivity, 20 courageous hostages are returning to the glorious embrace of their families, and it is glorious,” Trump said during an address to the Israeli Knesset.
The president has long vowed to bring home all the hostages, including the deceased.
Israeli and Palestinian officials are searching for the bodies of approximately 24 people who died in captivity after four corpses were returned, Trump told reporters while headed to Egypt. Search parties are scouring the rubble of the war-torn Gaza Strip, looking for the remains.
In exchange for the return of the hostages, Israel released more than 1,900 Palestinians, including approximately 250 who were imprisoned for various offenses.
Social media posts from friends and family members reunited with their loved ones depict scenes with the newly freed individuals brimming with emotion.
Another family expressed gratitude for the worldwide support.
“Thank you to everyone who supported us, fought for us, embraced us, and helped.”
Trump Proclaims ‘Dawn of a New Middle East’
Addressing Israeli lawmakers at the Knesset on Monday, Trump said the Gaza cease-fire was a key development in a burgeoning moment for peace throughout the Middle East.“It’s the start of a grand concord and lasting harmony for Israel and all the nations of what will soon be a truly magnificent region,” he said. “I believe that, so strongly, this is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.”
Trump set the moment of opportunity for peace as one built on the back of Israeli and U.S. military successes throughout the region.
“The dagger of Hezbollah, long aimed at Israel’s throat, has been totally shattered,” the president said.
At another point, Trump noted Israeli and U.S. strikes in June, targeting Iran’s military leadership, as well as nuclear scientists and nuclear facilities.
Renewed Abraham Accords Push
Trump used his visit to the region as an opportunity to reinvigorate a peace initiative he began during his first term, known as the Abraham Accords. The accords aim to normalize diplomatic and economic relations between Israel and its predominantly Muslim neighbors.“We've seen those nations that set aside their differences, reached across ancient divides, and pursued engagement are now among the most successful in the region,” he said during his remarks to the Knesset. “They're getting along with Israel, and they're doing great.”
As he spoke to Israeli lawmakers, Trump criticized his predecessor in the White House.
Egypt Summit
Leaders representing 35 countries from around the world gathered in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, to sign a security agreement at the Gaza Peace Summit.“This is the day that people across the region and around the world have been working, striving, hoping, and praying for,” Trump said during the ceremony after the peace deal was inked.
A newly established “Board of Peace” will monitor the situation on the ground to help ensure long-term tranquility. Trump said countries would initially be selected by raffle to fill out the board.
“Together we’ve achieved what everybody said was impossible,” Trump said. “Together we have peace in the Middle East.”
The heads of state from France, Italy, Germany, Jordan, Turkey, and the United Kingdom joined the summit, as did U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Phase 2 Negotiations Have Begun
Sitting beside Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi during a bilateral press conference on Monday, Trump was asked when negotiations would begin on the implementation of a second phase of the Gaza cease-fire.“As far as we're concerned, Phase Two started,” Trump replied.
The U.S. president said the phases of this current deal “are all a little bit mixed in with each other,” and alluded to efforts to clean out the rubble and debris from the war-torn Gaza Strip.
After entering into this earlier cease-fire deal in January, Hamas released an agreed-upon number of hostages, in line with the Phase One conditions. Hamas negotiators then sought to initiate the second phase of the deal, while Israel supported a proposal set forth by U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff to extend the cease-fire terms of the first phase and buy time for further negotiations.
While speaking with reporters on Monday, Witkoff indicated he and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner would remain actively involved in the minute negotiations necessary to keep the peace deal progressing.
"Jared and I were already working on the implementation side," Witkoff said. "So we're dug in. We'll be here quite a bit. That's at the direction of the President."