UDPATE:
So, Trump is completely full of shit. Or someone lied to him. Let’s just give him the benefit of the doubt and say his own advisors lied to him about what was in the deal. We try not to be unnecessarily hard on Trump and it doesn’t really make sense he would purposefully post fake information hours before the real information was released.
Anyway, in my original article below you can see that Trump came out and said the ceasefire deal involves the release of all hostages. He didn’t technically say “all,” but he also didn’t say “some,” which means anyone is going to read the post as meaning “all hostages” (especially since he said they were going to release ALL hostages before he was inaugurated, which is now officially not happening). He made this statement before the Qataris who are negotiating the deal with Israel announce the official terms of the ceasefire.
The official terms are that this is “phases,” and in the first phase, Hamas is only going to release 33 of the hostages. The second stage, they said, is not even negotiated yet. Neither side has agreed on the second stage. This obviously means that Hamas is maintaining their position that they will only release all hostages when they get security guarantees that Israel will leave Gaza forever.
In exchange for each of the hostages, Hamas is going to get dozens of their own people back.
For each woman or child hostage returned to Israel, Israel is expected to release 30 Palestinian women and children from its prisons. Hamas would release all hostages over 50 years of age, and Israel would release 30 Palestinian prisoners aged 50 or older.
The Jews are going ape on social media over this.
So the thing is, if Trump actually wants to end that war, he is going to have to convince Israel to agree that they are not going to ever annex Gaza. This would defeat the entire purpose of the Israeli operation in Gaza, and mean it was all for nothing.
It’s very unlikely the Jews will agree to this.
Remember that Bibi’s number one stated objective in Gaza was to destroy Hamas. That has not happened at all, and in order for it to happen, he would have to kill or expel everyone in Gaza.
If this ceasefire reaches the second phase, Israel will have lost the war.
Original article follows.
I’m going to wait until Hamas announces to comment on this. That should happen shortly.
I’ll update the article.
RT:
Israel and Hamas have struck a deal that secures the release of all hostages held by the Palestinian militant group, US President-elect Donald Trump has announced
“We have a deal for the hostages in the Middle East,” Trump posted on his TruthSocial platform on Wednesday. “They will be released shortly.”
According to multiple media outlets, the agreement approved in Qatar involves a 42-day ceasefire and an exchange of prisoners, including all Israelis taken captive in the October 7, 2023 Hamas incursion from Gaza.
“This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November, as it signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies,” Trump added in another post.
His national security team will “continue to work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven,” the president-elect added. “This is only the beginning of great things to come for America, and indeed, the World!”
Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, reportedly joined the talks in Doha and played a key role in persuading the Israeli delegation to accept the deal.
Here’s the full Trump post:
It’s being framed as “Israel compelled to agree.”
The deal Israel was refusing was a permanent ceasefire with guarantees from rich Gulf states. They’d been demanding a limited ceasefire with temporary hostage release, which Hamas consistently rejected, because that would just mean they give up all leverage and then Israel comes in again and kills everyone and takes the land.
(I guess you could argue that the hostages aren’t actually leverage because Netanyahu will kill the hostages, he literally doesn’t care, but that is still no reason to give them up.)
But we don’t know what the deal is yet.
If it’s a 42 day ceasefire with no longterm security guarantees for Gaza, and a release of all hostages, then one would have to assume Hamas leadership just sold out Palestine, with Sinwar and others who were ride or die already dead.
But again, we have to see the Hamas announcement.
I’ll update the article.