Hamas declared it was ready to free hostages under Trump's ceasefire plan

Story by AFP 04-0-2025

US President Donald Trump said Friday he believed Hamas was ready for peace and told Israel to stop bombing Gaza, after the Palestinian militant group declared it was ready to free hostages under his ceasefire plan.

"Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!" Trump posted on Truth Social.

"Right now, it's far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East."

The Hamas statement came hours after Trump had given a deadline of late Sunday to respond to the peace plan he unveiled earlier this week at the White House or face "hell."

"The movement announces its approval for the release of all hostages -- living and remains -- according to the exchange formula included in President Trump's proposal," the Hamas statement said, adding it was ready to enter talks "to discuss the details."

Trump also shared the Hamas statement on his social media -- in an almost unheard of move for a US president -- as did the White House.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier that Trump would make remarks on Hamas's "acceptance" of his deal, and posted a picture of him addressing television cameras from behind his desk.

"Behind the Scenes in the Oval Office: President Trump responds to Hamas' acceptance of his Peace Plan," Leavitt posted on X. "Stay tuned!"

Trump unveiled the 20-point peace plan alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday, saying that if Hamas rejected it he would back Israel to "finish the job." 

A senior Hamas official, Mahmoud Mardawi, told AFP on Friday that Trump's plan was "vague, ambiguous and lacks clarity."

dk/sms

Hamas welcomes parts of US proposal for ending Gaza war, but seeks follow-up talks

Story by Jacob Magid-The Times of Israel-MSN 03-10-2025

Hamas announces that it has submitted its response to US President Donald Trump’s proposal for ending the Gaza war, declaring that it is prepared to release all remaining hostages under the terms laid out in the plan and that it is ready to immediately enter negotiations with the mediators to discuss the details.

The group is ostensibly referring to talks that still need to be held regarding the identities of the roughly 2,000 Palestinian security prisoners and bodies of slain Gazans who would be released in exchange for the 48 hostages, 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

But the Hamas statement stipulates that the hostages will be released “with the provision of the field conditions necessary for the exchange process.”

It does not elaborate further on this issue, but the stance suggests that it may not be able to release all 48 hostages within 72 hours of the deal coming into place — as the US plan states — if the conditions on the ground are not appropriate. The terror group has, in the past, told mediators that it doesn’t know where some of the bodies of slain hostages are located and that it may take some time to deliver all of them back to Israel.

Hamas also reiterates its willingness to hand over control of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinian technocrats, as envisioned by the US proposal.

“As for what was included in President Trump’s proposal regarding other issues related to the future of the Gaza Strip and the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, this… will be discussed through a comprehensive Palestinian national framework, which Hamas will be part of,” the terror group says.

All other issues pertaining to the future of Gaza would include the question of whether Hamas will disarm — a key component of the US proposal — one that has been a red line for Hamas and something that the group’s statement gives no indication that it is prepared to accept.

Moreover, Hamas’s desire to be part of a national Palestinian dialogue regarding the future political aspirations of the Palestinian people also appears to conflict with the terms of the deal, which stipulate that Hamas can have no role — direct or indirect — in the governance of Gaza.

Hamas says it conducted talks with other factions in order to come up with the response presented to the mediators.

The group says it appreciated international efforts on the matter, including the one advanced by Trump, highlighting the US proposal’s provisions ending the war, releasing Palestinian prisoners, surging aid into Gaza, rejecting the occupation of the Strip, and rejecting the displacement of Palestinians from the enclave.

It’s also not immediately clear whether the formal response submitted to the mediators is the same as the public statement, given that the latter also makes no mention of Hamas’s qualms regarding the proposal’s envisioned withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza.

An Arab diplomat told The Times of Israel that Hamas and the mediators were expected to seek amendments regarding this issue, due to displeasure with the 11th-hour changes that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secured that slowed and limited the pull-out of Israeli troops.

The post Hamas welcomes parts of US proposal for ending Gaza war, but seeks follow-up talks appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Israel bombs Gaza homes; Hamas responds to Trump proposal

Gaza Faces Renewed Displacement and Bombardment Amid Escalating Conflict

By Jillian Kestler-D'Amours and Fiona Kelliher 3 Oct 2025

Hamas says it has submitted its response to Gaza mediators, agreeing to free all Israeli captives under US President Donald Trump’s peace plan and handing over administration of the enclave to Palestinian technocrats.

At least 72 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip since dawn, including 42 in Gaza City alone, according to medical sources speaking to Al Jazeera.

Israel’s army is using remote-controlled vehicles packed with explosives to demolish entire neighbourhoods in besieged Gaza City after issuing a “last chance” to leave warning to hundreds of thousands of trapped Palestinians.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 66,288 people and wounded 169,165 since October 2023. Thousands more are believed to be buried under the rubble. A total of 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, attacks and about 200 were taken captive.