The last 20 surviving Israeli hostages abducted and held by Hamas, the Islamist militant group in the Palestinian Gaza Strip, all returned on the 13th (local time). It was 737 days after they were kidnapped in Hamas' surprise attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
According to local media and others, Hamas first released seven people early that morning in northern Gaza and freed the remaining 13 a few hours later near Khan Younis in southern Gaza. The surviving hostages were handed over to the Israel Defense Forces via the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). All were men who reunited with their families at a military base in Re'im in southern Israel and then underwent medical checkups.
The bodies of the remaining 28 deceased hostages (including the remains of one person abducted before the Gaza war) are also expected to be delivered to Israel, but the exact timing was not clear.
Under the agreement, Israel released more than 1,900 Palestinian inmates, including 250 serving life sentences.
The releases of hostages and inmates took place under the first phase of a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas that took effect on the 10th, in line with U.S. President Donald Trump's Gaza peace initiative.
About an hour and a half after the first seven hostages were released, President Trump arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. He delivered a speech at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, after the Israel Defense Forces announced the release of all surviving hostages.
In his speech, President Trump declared that "a historic dawn of a new Middle East has opened," boasting that "for generations to come, this moment will be remembered not only as the end of the war but as the starting point of all change."
President Trump said, "Israel has gained everything that can be gained by force," adding, "Now it is time to turn this victory into the ultimate achievement of peace and prosperity." He promised Palestinians that he would help rebuild Gaza, which was devastated by the war, and urged them to "turn away forever from the path of fear and violence."
Meanwhile, following the first-phase swap of hostages and inmates under the cease-fire agreement, the second phase is expected to discuss Hamas' disarmament, the phased withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces, and the establishment of a Palestinian civil government.