A deal has been reached for the first phase of an agreement to end Israel’s two-year war in Gaza, President Donald Trump said on Wednesday.
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” said Trump in a post on Truth Social. “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.”
“All Parties will be treated fairly! This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!” he added.
Negotiators for Israel and the terror group Hamas have huddled in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, for days with mediators to hammer out an agreement on the first phase of the U.S.-backed framework for peace in Gaza and a pathway to a Palestinian state. The first phase of the deal will be presented to the Israeli cabinet on Thursday for approval.
As part of the first phase, Hamas plans to release the 20 living hostages this weekend, according to the Associated Press. Hamas is responsible for the bodies of 28 dead hostages, though it is unclear whether the terror group can locate and retrieve them. Once the Israeli cabinet approves the agreement, the terror group has 72 hours to return the hostages.
Israel’s military has 24 hours from the time the deal is approved by the Israeli cabinet to withdraw from to the heart of Gaza to a predetermined boundary.
The first phase of the deal as presented by Trump last week involved a swap of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel for the remaining hostages, living and dead, held by the terror group Hamas. The framework presented by Trump had Hamas releasing all 48 hostages within 72 hours of an agreement in exchange for hundreds of prisoners from Israel.
Negotiations reportedly stuck on the hostage release. Israeli officials were concerned that Hamas may not be able to retrieve all the bodies of the dead hostages for return to Israel.
🚨Israeli officials believe the deal will be reached within 24-36 hours.
Hamas has provided information on the living hostages — 20 in total.
Hamas is searching for all the bodies of the dead hostages, though it’s far from guaranteed that they’ll all be found.
Israel is…
— Amit Segal (@AmitSegal) October 8, 2025
Diplomats converged on the sea-side city of Sharm el-Sheikh this week as Israel and Hamas negotiators drew close to an agreement.
Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law and former Middle East adviser, Jared Kushner were expected to head to Egypt earlier this week. Qatar Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani was set to join negotiators in person in Egypt on Wednesday, as well as Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin, according to The New York Times.
