Gaza war over as Israel, Hamas exchange hostages

The two years war in the middle was seems to have ended with the exchange of all of the remaining living hostages in Gaza have been freed from Hamas captivity and are back in Israel after two years of war. 

The ceasefire was brokered by the United States President, Donald Trump who is presently in the middle East to see to the end of the war and that peace returns to Gaza.

A group of 13 hostages were escorted across the border by the Israeli military, after a group of seven hostages was released earlier by Hamas.

As part of the first phase of the US ceasefire agreement, 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences were released. Hundreds of people in Gaza are also awaiting the release of 1,718 Palestinian detainees held in Israel since October 7, 2023.

US President Donald Trump was on Monday at Israel’s parliament, where he met with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Later, he will address members of the Knesset as well as meeting some of the families of the hostages.

Trump will then head to Egypt, where leaders from more than 20 countries will join a summit on Gaza’s future. Netanyahu will also attend the summit, according to the Egyptian Presidency and a White House official.

Hamas has released all 20 living hostages as part of a ceasefire agreement with Israel. The hostages were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross and then transferred to the Israeli military, who took them to the Reim military base to reunite with their families. The release marks a significant step toward ending the two-year war between Israel and Hamas.

In exchange for the hostages, Israel released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. US President Donald Trump, who brokered the ceasefire deal, arrived in Israel to celebrate the agreement, declaring the war "over". 

The release of hostages and prisoners is part of a broader peace framework aimed at ending the conflict and opening the door to building a durable peace in the Middle East.