TRUMP SAYS ISRAEL’S WAR ON GAZA HAS OFFICIALLY ENDED AS HAMAS RELEASES HOSTAGES

Mon 13 October 2025:

US President Donald Trump said Monday that Israel’s war on the besieged Gaza Strip is officially over, just minutes after the Palestinian group Hamas completed the release of all 20 living Israeli hostages who were held in the coastal enclave.

Asked by a reporter if the war has concluded, Trump briefly said, “yes” as he prepared to address Israeli lawmakers at the Knesset.

Hamas’ military wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, concluded on Monday the release of 20 living Israeli hostages, according to an Anadolu correspondent.

The hostages were handed over to Red Cross teams in two groups in the Gaza Strip.

Under Trump’s 20-point ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, in exchange for the released Israeli hostages, the release of 1,968 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 sentenced to life, is also underway.

Trump received widespread praise, and offered plenty to himself, during his Knesset address following the Gaza ceasefire agreement, presenting the outcome as a military victory for Israel.

Trump portrayed Israel as having defeated its enemies with American support, saying Palestinians must now learn the lesson and abandon what he called “terrorism”.

While acknowledging Israel’s growing isolation, Trump said he had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop fighting the world and accept a deal to end the war. He framed the agreement as a step toward expanding the Abraham Accords and deepening Israel’s ties with Arab states.

Trump also cited his previous recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and of its annexation of the occupied Golan Heights.

His speech reframed Israel not as a pariah state with a leader wanted by the ICC [International Criminal Court] but as a victor.

In his closing remarks, the US president says there will be “a future that is worthy of our heritage”.

“We are going to build a legacy that all the people of this region will be proud of. New bonds of friendship, cooperation and commerce will join Tel Aviv to Dubai, Haifa to Beirut, Jerusalem to Damascus and from Israel to Egypt, from Saudi Arabia to Qatar, from India to Pakistan, from Indonesia to Iraq, from Syria to Bahrain, Turkey to Jordan, the United Arab Emirates to Oman and Armenia to Azerbaijan.”

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Many observers believe Israel may not have agreed to the latest ceasefire until Trump increased pressure on its leadership.

There was a growing sense that financial and diplomatic consequences could follow if Israel continued to resist a deal, and that Trump’s patience with Netanyahu was wearing thin.

Trump had made that frustration public on several occasions, something no previous US president had done, even though relations between Netanyahu and Barack Obama were often strained and Trump was similarly critical of Joe Biden’s efforts to end the war.

About a year ago, a similar deal was on the table but collapsed after Israel walked away.

Now, Trump sees this as a historic moment, a chance to claim a diplomatic victory. By travelling to Israel, he has tied his name directly to the peace deal. If it fails, the responsibility will also rest with him.

The release of Palestinian prisoners has also begun, as the buses have left Israeli prisons for Gaza and the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office on Monday.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says the release of captives provides momentum that must be used to end the war.

“I urge all parties to build on this momentum and to honor their commitments under the ceasefire to end the nightmare in Gaza,” he posted on X.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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