Cairo/Jerusalem, October 14: Hamas released the last living Israeli hostages from Gaza on Monday under a ceasefire agreement that also saw Israel free nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, as U.S. President Donald Trump declared an end to the two-year Gaza war that has reshaped the Middle East.
“The skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace,” Trump told Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, describing the agreement as closing a “long nightmare” for both Israelis and Palestinians.
The Israeli military said it had received all 20 surviving hostages from Gaza, transferred by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The announcement sparked tears and cheers among thousands gathered at “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv. In Gaza, families wept and waved flags as buses carrying freed Palestinian detainees arrived at hospitals and staging points across the enclave.
The exchanges marked the first phase of a U.S.-brokered deal to end the war, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and Turkey. The ceasefire halted Israel’s major offensive in Gaza City that had killed scores daily and allowed thousands of Palestinians to return to the ruins of their homes.
Later on Monday, Trump joined Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and leaders from Qatar and Turkey at a summit in Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to discuss Gaza’s future governance, reconstruction and security. More than 20 world leaders attended, though neither Israel nor Hamas were represented.
Trump, who has cast the deal as a foundation for a broader Middle East peace, signed a joint declaration with Egypt, Qatar and Turkey pledging to “work collectively to implement and sustain this legacy.”
The ceasefire came as Gaza health authorities said 68,000 people had been killed during Israel’s bombardments since the war began in October 2023, when Hamas gunmen launched attacks that killed 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages.
Israel also returned the remains of four deceased hostages on Monday, while efforts continue to locate the bodies of 26 others believed to have died in captivity.
U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher urged swift delivery of food, fuel and shelter to Gaza’s displaced population, warning that hundreds of thousands remained at risk of famine and disease.
Formidable challenges remain in securing a lasting peace, with questions over who will govern Gaza and whether Hamas will disarm. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas attended the summit and told Trump his government wanted a key role in Gaza’s future administration.
Tensions persist in the occupied West Bank, where Jewish settlement expansion continues, and in Gaza, where Hamas gunmen killed 32 members of a rival faction after Israel’s partial withdrawal, according to a Palestinian security source.
The Gaza conflict also spilled across borders in recent months, with Israel engaging in a brief 12-day war with Iran and carrying out strikes against Tehran-backed groups including Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.
Trump, who described the Gaza deal as “the greatest peace of them all,” suggested that more Arab nations would join the Abraham Accords and even floated the possibility of a future peace agreement between Israel and Iran.
“I think they want it,” he told lawmakers in Jerusalem. “Wouldn’t it be nice?”
