Israel And Hamas Have A Deal On First Phase Of Middle East Peace Plan

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.”

Trump will be traveling to Israel in the coming days, he told Axios reporter Barack Ravid. The president said he may give a speech in the Knesset, as well.

“They want me to give a speech at the Knesset and I will definitely do that if they want me to,” the president said.

Trump’s address to the Knesset would be the first by a U.S. president in nearly two decades. President George W. Bush was the last sitting president to address the Israeli parliament. Bush spoke in the Knesset in 2008 to mark Israel’s 60th anniversary.

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 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.

In Egypt, happy faces and hugs can be seen, as well as a rare handshake between Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani and a member of the Israeli negotiating team, Ret. Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon, with reports suggesting that a ceasefire and hostage… pic.twitter.com/npOKuyLZqe

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 8, 2025

Diplomats converged on the seaside 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.

Photos of the negotiation room taken after the deal was reached on Thursday show the emotions of the negotiators. Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani shook the hand of an Israeli negotiator, Retired Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon – a rare display of mutual respect less than a month after an Israeli airstrike hit Doha, Qatar’s capital, in an attack on Hamas’ leadership.

A senior White House official told CBS News that the Israeli cabinet would vote on the deal on Thursday. “Once they vote yes, Israel has to withdraw to the line which should take under 24 hours,” the official said.