Trump Declares Gaza War Over as Hamas Frees Final 20 Hostages
The sun was setting over Tel Aviv when the first bus pulled into Hostage Square.
Thousands had gathered — parents clutching flags, soldiers in dusty uniforms, strangers locked arm in arm, eyes fixed on the television screens suspended above the crowd.
When the doors opened and the first freed hostages stepped out, the air erupted into sobs and shouts of disbelief.
After two years of relentless war, Hamas had handed over the last 20 surviving hostages. The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed that 13 arrived in the final transfer on Monday, after seven had been released earlier that day.
In Jerusalem, U.S. President Donald Trump — freshly arrived to a hero’s welcome — told lawmakers at the Knesset, “This is a great day. This is a new beginning.”
Asked by reporters whether the Gaza war was truly over, Trump smiled and said simply: “Yes.”
A Brokered Peace, Two Years in the Making
The deal that brought the hostages home had taken months of back-channel talks involving Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.
Under the terms, Israel began releasing dozens of Palestinian detainees from its prisons, their buses bound for Gaza even as the freed hostages were being embraced by their families on Israeli soil.
For many, it was a bittersweet reunion — the joy of survival shadowed by the memory of those who never made it back.
“I am full of happiness,” said Viki Cohen, mother of released hostage Nimrod Cohen. “It’s hard to describe what it feels like to see his face again after two years. I didn’t sleep all night.”
Trump’s Gamble
The truce marks the first major diplomatic victory of Trump’s second term and could reshape his legacy in the Middle East.
The former president — whose critics doubted he could restore American credibility in the region — now stood as the architect of a ceasefire that ended one of the bloodiest chapters in recent memory.
“This was about ending endless wars,” Trump said before departing for Cairo, where he is expected to meet with Egyptian and Gulf leaders to discuss a broader framework for Gaza’s postwar governance.
Analysts say Trump’s assertive style and transactional diplomacy pushed both Israel and Hamas toward a deal that months of quiet mediation had failed to deliver.
A Fragile New Beginning
Whether this moment endures is another question.
Gaza remains in ruins, its political future uncertain, and trust between Israelis and Palestinians is scarcer than ever. Yet for one evening, there was something rare: the sound of people cheering rather than sirens.
In Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square, as the names of the freed were read aloud, the crowd sang a single word — “Shalom.”
Peace.
And for the first time in two years, it didn’t sound impossible.
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