Donald Trump reveals details of personal phone call that led Netanyahu to accept ceasefire plan
Speaking on the Israeli offensive in Gaza, President Trump said Netanyahu had "gone too far"
Donald Trump has revealed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted the ceasefire deal on a personal call with the Israeli leader.
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"Netanyahu had reservations but I told him that this is his opportunity for victory," said President Trump.
"He accepted it. There is no other choice, with me you have to be okay."
Speaking on the Israeli offensive in Gaza, President Trump said Netanyahu had "gone too far" and "Israel [had] lost a lot of support in the world".
"Now I will bring back all that support," declared Trump.
The phone call reportedly happened on Friday, October 3 - the same day Hamas signalled it was ready to negotiate the release of the Israeli hostages.
In September, a UN commission declared the actions of Israel constituted a genocide, as the death toll in Gaza passed 60,000.
On Saturday afternoon, President Trump declared Israel had accepted an initial withdrawal line, which had been shared with Hamas.
In a social media post, Trump said: "When Hamas confirms, the Ceasefire will be IMMEDIATELY effective, the Hostages and Prisoner Exchange will begin, and we will create the conditions for the next phase of withdrawal, which will bring us close to the end of this 3,000 YEAR CATASTROPHE.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and, STAY TUNED!"
Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kusher are travelling to Egypt this weekend for discussions over the hostage release plan with Hamas, according to reports.
The 20-point-plan laid out by the Trump administration has not been fully agreed to by Hamas.
While Hamas are expected to release all hostages, Israel will have to "release 250 life sentence prisoners plus 1700 Gazans who were detained after October 7 2023, including all women and children detained in that context."
Trump is also ordering Israel to resume "full aid" into the Gaza Strip, regardless of the response of Hamas to the proposal.
Significantly, the proposal by the Trump administration state Israel is not to "occupy or annex Gaza" and that no one who lives in Gaza "will be forced to leave" - a shift away from Trump's previous proposals of a "Riviera of the Middle East".
Israel has pushed back against the possibility that Palestinians will be allowed to form a state without Hamas in charge.