“A great day for Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Wednesday night, announcing the approval of a landmark deal to bring home all the remaining Israeli hostages — a breakthrough reached with direct backing from President Donald Trump.
The announcement capped days of intense diplomacy, confirming a Trump-backed deal that will bring home every remaining Israeli hostage.
“I will convene the government to approve the agreement and bring all our dear hostages home,” Netanyahu said in a statement on X. He credited the “courage and sacrifice” of Israel’s soldiers and security forces, and thanked Trump and his team “for their mobilization for this sacred mission.”
Shortly after, he followed up on X, calling the breakthrough “a diplomatic success and a national and moral victory for the State of Israel,” and reaffirming: “From the beginning, I made it clear: we will not rest until all our hostages return and all our goals are achieved.” He said Israel reached “this critical turning point” through “steadfast resolve, powerful military action, and the great efforts of our great friend and ally President Trump.”
“I thank President Trump for his leadership, his partnership, and his unwavering commitment to the safety of Israel and the freedom of our hostages,” Netanyahu added. “With the help of the Almighty, together we will continue to achieve all our goals and expand peace with our neighbors. God Bless Israel. God Bless America. God Bless our great alliance.”
Trump, for his part, formally announced the deal Wednesday evening on Truth Social, confirming that both Israel and Hamas “have signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” which “means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon,” with Israel to “withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.” He called it “a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America,” thanking mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey.
As Breitbart News reported earlier, the agreement could see all the remaining Israeli hostages — taken on October 7, 2023 — released as early as this weekend.
During a White House press conference on Wednesday, Trump said he may visit Egypt “toward the end of the week — maybe on Sunday,” adding, “there’s a very good chance that negotiations are going along very well … Our final negotiation is with Hamas and it seems to be going well.”
The deal comes nearly two years after the October 7 attacks and follows Trump’s 20-point “Peace and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza,” unveiled last week at the White House alongside Netanyahu — tying reconstruction to Hamas’s dismantlement and the return of every remaining hostage.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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