As Israeli hostages are freed and Palestinian prisoners and detainees released, and after President Donald Trump’s lengthy speech to Israel’s parliament on Monday, attention is shifting to what comes next.
Some of the longest applause for Trump’s speech came when he said virtually the entire region had backed a plan to demilitarize Gaza and disarm Hamas, key elements of his 20-point plan on which no agreement has yet been reached.
Now that the first phase of his plan is being implemented, negotiators and neighboring countries will watch to see whether key points of Trump’s proposal will be accepted by both Israel and Hamas in talks on the next phases.
Last days
A ceasefire went into effect in Gaza on Friday at noon local time (5 a.m. ET), after Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of Trump’s plan, bringing relative calm to the enclave for the first time in months since the last truce collapsed in March.
As part of the first phase of Trump’s plan, 20 live hostages were handed over to Israel on Monday. The remains of another 28 hostages held by Hamas were expected to be released within 72 hours, although initially only four were released, much to the disappointment of the families.
Israel also pledged to release 250 convicted prisoners and 1,700 Palestinians detained since October 7. More than 150 of the freed prisoners were deported to Egypt.
More aid has begun to arrive in the enclave in recent days, although it is far below what aid workers consider necessary.
And now what?
Hamas has long claimed that it would not release the last of the hostages until Israeli groups leave Gaza completely, but having accepted the first phase of Trump’s plan, the militant group is confident in Trump’s assurances that a full withdrawal will eventually occur.
When and if Israel withdraws completely remains unclear.
Meanwhile, it is also unclear whether Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, will accept a key stipulation of Trump’s overall plan, as well as a crucial demand from Israel: that it disarm.
Hamas has long rejected calls to lay down its arms, saying it has the right to armed resistance until Israel ends its occupation of Palestinian territories, and that has been a key point in talks to negotiate an end to Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
In an interview with Al Jazeera on October 9, senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said that no Palestinian would agree to hand over their weapons and that the people of Gaza needed resistance more than ever.
The militant group agreed to relinquish leadership of the territory and hand over the government to a transitional body of Palestinian technocrats, which would be overseen by an international body, called the “Peace Board.” this body It is expected to be led by Trump, with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair also named as a possible candidate. member of the supervisory body.
Taking note of the plan aboard Air Force One on Monday is route to Israel, Trump said he first wanted to know if “Tony would be popular with everyone.”
“I like Tony, I’ve always liked Tony, but I want to find out that he’s an acceptable choice for everyone,” he added.
The idea of Blair joining the junta already drew early criticism, as his reputation in the region was overshadowed by his decision to back the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and claims by the US and Britain that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction turned out to be false.
Trump optimistic
Speaking aboard Air Force One en route to Israel on Monday, Trump said he believed “everyone is happy” with his 20-point peace plan.
Noting that much of Gaza now looks like a “demolition site” after more than two years of Israeli offensive in the enclave, Trump said cleanup efforts would begin “virtually immediately.”
During his speech to the Knesset, Trump also said that Israel has gained everything it can by force.
“Now is the time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East,” he said.
In Gaza, Palestinians across the enclave balanced their hopes for peace with fears that the ceasefire may not hold, as many return to areas where their homes once stood.
“Everything is gone; there are no necessities of life left,” one man told NBC News.
“So what do you live for? Our money, our houses that we worked hard on for years, everything is gone,” he said. “There is nothing left.”
