‘War is over’: Donald Trump departs for Middle East as Israel awaits hostage release

Trump will first land in Israel, where he is expected to address the country’s parliament, following which he will leave for Egypt, where he will co-host the Gaza peace summit along with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. During the peace summit, several world leaders will be present to back Trump’s peace deal for ending the war in Gaza.

“The war is over. Okay? You understand that?” Trump told the media aboard Air Force One while leaving for Israel. He also said that this trip to the Middle East is “special”. “Everybody’s very excited about this moment in time. This is a very special event,” he said.

When asked whether he thinks the ceasefire in Gaza will hold, the US President said, “I think [the ceasefire] is going to hold… I think people are tired.”

Trump also said that he is not sure whether he will be there when the 20 living Israeli hostages are released. “They have the hostages — I understand all 20 — and we may get them out a little bit early… They were in places that you don’t want to know about,” he said.

Trump is accompanied by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA chief John Ratcliffe and top US military officer Dan Caine during his visit to the Middle East.

During the first stage of the Gaza peace deal, Hamas will release all Israeli hostages it kidnapped during the October 7 attack, following which, Israel will release around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from its prisons and aid will be allowed in Gaza strip. However, how the later stages of the ceasefire deal will unfold is still unclear.

Netanyahu declares victory

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared victory on Sunday as the country awaits the return of the hostages after two long years.

“Together we achieved tremendous victories, victories that amazed the whole world… But at the same time I must tell you, the fight is not over,” Netanyahu said.

“This is an emotional evening, an evening of tears, an evening of joy, because tomorrow our children will return to our borders,” he added, quoting a biblical verse.

(With inputs from AFP)