Israel and Hamas have reached an agreement to exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, a long-awaited breakthrough that U.S. President Donald Trump said could mark the first step toward ending the two-year war in Gaza.
Trump, who helped broker the accord, said both sides had agreed to the first phase of his plan, which includes Israel pulling back its troops to an agreed-upon line. “This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, thanking Qatar, Egypt and Turkey for mediating the deal. “BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS,” he added.
The details of the exchange and the withdrawal line were not immediately clear. Israel’s initial statements did not mention a troop pullback, according to The New York Times.
In a post on X, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz thanked both Netanyahu and Trump for the leadership that led to the agreement. “I extend a big hug to the families of the hostages for the expected return home of their loved ones, including IDF soldiers and fallen soldiers,” Katz wrote. “The entire nation is waiting and excited.”
Qatar and Hamas said the agreement would also permit humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. Dr. Majed al-Ansari, spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, said the deal “will lead to ending the war, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the entry of aid,” with further details to be announced later.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement after Trump’s announcement that “all of our hostages will be brought home,” calling it a “great day for Israel.” He added that his government would meet Thursday to approve the agreement. Hamas, meanwhile, urged Trump and other guarantors “to fully implement the agreement’s requirements and not allow [Israel] to evade or delay.”
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged all parties to abide fully by the terms of the Gaza agreement. He said the U.N. would support its implementation and scale up aid delivery to the enclave. “All hostages must be released in a dignified manner. A permanent ceasefire must be secured,” Guterres said in a statement. “The fighting must stop once and for all. Immediate and unimpeded entry of humanitarian supplies and essential commercial materials into Gaza must be ensured. The suffering must end.”
In a separate interview with Reuters, Trump said the hostages-for-ceasefire deal represented “a great day for the world.”
“The whole world has come together on this one, Israel, every country has come together. This has been a fantastic day,” he said. “This is a great day for the world. This is a wonderful day, a wonderful day for everybody.”
The breakthrough follows months of stalled negotiations. In late September, Trump unveiled a 20-point proposal to end the war and free the remaining hostages. That plan called for the release of 250 Palestinians serving life sentences and 1,700 Gazans imprisoned during the conflict. The hostage release could begin as soon as this weekend, an official familiar with the talks told The New York Times.
While both sides have agreed to an exchange, it remains uncertain whether the deal will end the two-year-old war. Netanyahu has long demanded that Hamas disarm, but the group has publicly rejected the condition, and none of the statements issued Wednesday clarified whether disarmament was part of the agreement.
Trump had given Hamas until Sunday to accept the deal, warning that “many more of its fighters would be killed” if it did not. On Friday, Hamas said it was willing to release all hostages, living and dead, but sought to negotiate additional terms. That same evening, Trump said Hamas appeared “ready for a lasting peace” and urged Israel to halt its bombing campaign in Gaza.
The war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing roughly 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, including civilians and combatants, and devastated the territory’s infrastructure.
Israel believes about 20 hostages are still alive in Gaza and continues to seek the remains of about 25 others.
