Hamas begins releasing Israeli hostages, as Trump lands in Israel

JERUSALEM/CAIRO: Hamas handed over some of its last surviving Israeli hostages on Monday, a key step in ending two years of devastating conflict in Gaza as part of a ceasefire deal pushed by U.S. President Donald Trump, who landed in Israel to address the parliament.

With hundreds of cheering people gathered in Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, Israel's military said it had received the first seven of 20 surviving hostages after their transfer out of Gaza by the Red Cross.

"I am so excited. I am full of happiness. It's hard to imagine how I feel this moment. I didn't sleep all night," said Viki Cohen, mother of hostage Nimrod Cohen, as she travelled to Reim, an Israeli military camp where the hostages will be transferred.

The remaining 13 confirmed living hostages, along with the bodies of 26 dead hostages and another two whose fate is unknown, are also expected to be released on Monday, along with nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees and convicted prisoners.

LEADERS MEET TO DISCUSS LASTING PEACE

In Gaza, about a dozen masked and black-clad gunmen, apparently members of Hamas' armed wing, arrived at Nasser Hospital where a stage and chairs had been laid out to welcome returning Palestinian prisoners.

"I hope that these images can be the end to this war. We lost friends and relatives, we lost our houses and our city," said Emad Abu Joudat, 57, a Palestinian father of six from Gaza City as he watched the handover preparations on his phone.

The releases are one of the most important parts of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement concluded last week in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, where Trump and more than 20 other world leaders will be meeting later on Monday.

Trump landed in Israel shortly after the announced release of the first batch of hostages. He will address the parliament before heading to Egypt.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stood waiting at the airport as Air Force One taxied in, smiling and talking with the U.S. ambassador.

Trump will become only the fourth U.S. president to address the Knesset, following Jimmy Carter in 1979, Bill Clinton in 1994 and George W. Bush in 2008.

TWO YEARS OF CONFLICT

Two years of war have left Gaza in ruins, with nearly all its people homeless, and caused a humanitarian disaster on a massive scale. It has also reshaped the Middle East through Israeli conflicts with Iran, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthis.

Near Israel's Reim camp, where the hostages will be brought to be taken to hospitals, people lined the road waving Israeli flags on which a yellow ribbon - the symbol of remembrance for the hostages - was interwoven with the blue Star of David.

At Israeli prisons, some 1,966 detainees boarded buses and most were expected to be released at Gaza's Nasser Hospital on Monday, an official involved in the operation said.

In a statement issued on Monday, the armed wing of Hamas affirmed its commitment to the terms and timeline of the deal, contingent on Israel’s adherence. It said Israel agreed to a ceasefire and swap deal after it failed to free the hostages through its military offensive.

The main U.N. aid agency working in Gaza, UNRWA, urged Israel to allow more aid into the territory.

The conflict was sparked by a Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, that killed around 1,200 people in Israel with 251 taken hostage. Israeli airstrikes and ground assaults have since devastated Gaza, killing more than 67,000 Palestinians, the enclave's health officials say.