By Abiola Olawale
Israel and Hamas have inked their approval on the inaugural phase of the United States President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace initiative.
The agreement, announced on Wednesday amid high-stakes indirect talks in Egypt, paves the way for an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and a surge in humanitarian aid.
This development is expected to offer a glimmer of hope after two grueling years of conflict that have claimed thousands of lives and devastated the region.
The agreement was announced by Trump who took to his social media page.
“This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed-upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace,” President Donald Trump wrote on social media in trumpeting the agreement. “All Parties will be treated fairly!”
While the details of the agreement remain sketchy, Trump’s proposal called for an immediate ceasefire and release of the 48 hostages that militants in Gaza still hold from their attack on Israel two years ago.
The New Diplomat reports that this would be the third ceasefire reached since the war began.
The first was reached in November 2023. That ceasefire saw more than 100 hostages, mainly women and children, freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners before it broke down.
In the second, in January and February of this year, Palestinian militants released 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight more in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Israel ended that ceasefire in March with a surprise bombardment.
