Trump expects Israeli hostages to be released on Monday

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(The Hill) -- President Donald Trump says he expects the remaining hostages to be released from Gaza on Monday as part of the first phase of Trump's 20-point peace plan.

“The big thing is hostages are going to be released. It's probably, our time, would be probably Monday, and you know, it's… a terrible situation there,” the president said late Wednesday in a phone interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity.

Referring to where Hamas is holding those taken captive on Oct. 7, 2023, Trump continued, “They're deep, they're deep in the earth, and they're being gotten, and a lot of things are happening right now.”

“As we speak, so much is happening to get the hostages freed, and we think they'll all be coming back on Monday,” he added.

The president on Wednesday said a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas, after the two sides signed off on “the first Phase” of a peace deal announced late last month. The agreement marks a major reprieve to halt more than two years of war after the militant group's initial attack that killed approximately 1,200 Israelis and when more than 250 hostages were taken captive.

Trump, in his interview on "Hannity," said the hostage deal will include the return of the 20 living hostages as well as the 28 bodies that Hamas is still holding.

The president also spoke Wednesday evening with families of the hostages, who were in Washington meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The group cheered and thanked Trump for securing a deal

“Thank you very much. You just take care of yourselves,” he told them, on speakerphone with Lutnick. “The hostages will come back. They're all coming back on Monday.”

The deal comes after Trump intensified diplomatic efforts to halt the war, after Israel carried out strikes against Hamas officials residing in Qatar and without consulting the U.S. The president said he was “very unhappy” with the strike against a major military ally and the primary negotiator in efforts to end the war. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under pressure from Trump, agreed to the president’s 20-point plan for ending the war with Hamas. The president relied on a coalition of leaders from Arab, Gulf and Muslim-majority countries to pressure the Palestinian group to also accept the deal. 

Trump, in his interview with Hannity, said he spoke to Netanyahu earlier that night and described the moment as a “beautiful picture” that helps Israel’s public image.

“It's so good for Israel. I spoke to Bibi Netanyahu just a little while ago. He called. He said, ‘I can't believe it.’ He said, ‘Everybody's liking me now’ — meaning him. I said that, ‘More importantly, they're loving Israel again,’ and they really are," the president told the Fox News host, using the nickname for the Israeli leader.

He continued, describing the conversation further: “I said, ‘Israel cannot fight the world, Bibi. They can’t fight the world.’ And he understands that very well.”

“So it's amazing the way it's all come together, and it's a beautiful picture. I don't know if it could ever happen again. It was just a set of circumstances,” Trump said, adding, “So many different things happened that were so amazing. It's a lot of talent involved, I'll tell you. But there was a certain degree of luck too. You know, you need luck also. There is such a thing as luck.”

Trump also suggested Wednesday that he may travel to the Middle East over the weekend as negotiations continue.