Trump receives warm welcome in Israel as Hamas begins releasing hostages

Ahead of his arrival in Israel, Trump declared that the "war is over." He made these remarks while speaking to reporters during a press gaggle aboard Air Force One after emplaning for Israel. On being asked whether the war between Israel and Hamas is over, Trump responded, "The war is over. Ok. You understand that." Before boarding his flight, Trump called the upcoming visit a "special time."

"This is going to be a very special time...There are 500,000 people yesterday and today in Israel. And also, the Muslim and Arab countries are all cheering. Everybody's cheering at one time. That's never happened before. Usually, if you have one cheering, the other isn't. This is the first time everybody is amazed, and they're thrilled, and it's an honour to be involved, and we're gonna have an amazing time, and it's gonna be something that's never happened before," he said.

This marks Trump's first visit to Israel since he announced the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas and its affiliates stormed Israel from Gaza, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Hamas has released several hostages in earlier deals to let them go in exchange for Israel releasing Palestinian prisoners, and in addition to the remaining 20 hostages, Hamas was to hand over the bodies of about 20 who died in custody.

The peace deal, based on a 20-point peace plan announced by Trump, was mediated by Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish officials with the participation of some Americans, including Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Presidents Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestine Authority, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, and Emmanuel Macron of France, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer and leaders from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates were among those expected to be at the summit.

It was not known if Israel would attend, and, if so, at what level. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also invited by the summit's co-chairs, Trump and el-Sisi. However, he is not attending, and instead, Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, is to represent India.

Trump was confident that the ceasefire and the next phases of the peace plan would go ahead, pointing to the celebrations on both sides. Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also expressed confidence about the peace holding. The next phase of the peace deal requires Hamas to lay down arms.