First Hostages Freed in Major Hamas-Israel Prisoner Swap as Trump Declares ‘The War Is Over’

Key Points:

• The Red Cross received seven hostages on Monday the first in a large-scale prisoner swap agreement by Hamas
• U.S. President Donald Trump while on the way to Israel declared that the war is over
• Overall 20 Israeli hostages will be exchanged for over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel

Hamas has handed over seven hostages to the Red Cross on Monday, the first release under the terms of a new ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

The condition of the 7 hostages named as Matan Angrest, brothers Gali and Ziv Berman, Alon Ohel, Eitan Mor, Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Omri Miran was not immediately known since the hostages were directly taken to the Israeli military for medical assessment and later reunited with their families.

The release is part of a larger, incremental deal. Hamas has said that 20 living hostages will eventually get exchanged for 1,900 Palestinian detainees held by Israel. Families and friends of hostages, who have for two years led high-profile demonstrations erupted into wild cheers as Israeli television stations declared the hostages were handed over to the Red Cross. The moments were viewed at various public screenings in the whole country, including one massive event in Tel Aviv.

The Process of the Exchange

The exchange mechanism occurs after days of serious indirect negotiation, mainly mediated by the US, Qatar and Egypt, resulting in adoption of the first phase of the peace plan suggested by the Trump administration. According to The Associated Press, Hamas provided the list of the 20 living hostages earlier on Monday.

While the return of the captives is a clear victory for the Israeli public and government, it initiates a high-stakes exchange. The Palestinian prisoners to be released involves those serving life sentences due to the offences committed against the Israelis in attacks and almost 1,700 Gazans detained since the war started. The release of Palestinian prisoners is a contentious issue in Israel as they are mostly considered terrorists, whereas by most Palestinians they are considered freedom fighters against Israeli occupation.

Trump Declares ‘War is Over’

Coinciding with the sensitive hostage transfer, U.S. President Donald Trump departed on an highstakes peace trip to Israel and Egypt. As he departed, he confidently stated that the ‘war is ove’r in Gaza, yet, there were some uncertainties surrounding the conflict resolution on a long term basis. According to a report, Trump’s visit is intended to celebration his major role in facilitating the breakthrough ceasefire and hostage deal.

The President is expected to arrive in Israel shortly and will speak at Knesset (the parliament of Israel) before he leaving for Egypt where he will be a co-host of a major peace conference in the world. The summit, which will be chaired by President Trump and the Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, is expected to support and empower the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Egyptian Honor and Peace Summit

As a major diplomacy gesture, the office of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi said Egypt will give U.S. President Donald Trump the highest civilian award in Egypt, The Order of the Nile. The award is for his efforts to stop the war in Gaza. Statement issued by the office of the Egyptian leader said that Trump had made a significant contribution to supporting peace, conflict defusion, and most recently, ending the war in Gaza.

Nevertheless, the announcement that the war is over by the U.S. President has been received with reservations since many important questions are yet to be answered. This includes the future governance of Gaza Strip, disarming of Hamas which has not been willing to surrender its weapons and the schedule upon which an entire withdrawal of Israeli troops in the territory can be achieved.

The stage under consideration as one of the 20-point Gaza Peace Plan suggested by Trump is typically regarded as the least problematic one, whereas the most complicated political and security issues are to be discussed at the next steps of the negotiation process. The peace summit planned in Egypt will be the first platform where these pending issues which are hard to solve will be addressed.