'War is Over': Israeli hostages released by Hamas as Trump arrives in Middle East to seal deal
The 20 living hostages held by the group have been are handed over to the Red Cross in exchange for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas has released all the Israeli hostages after 738 days in captivity.
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Early on Monday, seven captives were handed to the Red Cross in Gaza City. The remaining 13 were handed over in southern Gaza by armed plain-clothes Hamas members without ceremony.
They were driven through the pockmarked streets of Gaza, partially destroyed by relentless Israeli bombing over the past two years.
The Israel Defence Force (IDF) drove the freed captives to Re’im military base in southern Israel, where their relatives were waiting.
Some of the hostages were allowed to call their loved ones on the journey, according to images released on social media.
Those released to the Red Cross on Monday include Gali and Ziv Berman, Matan Angrest, Alon Ohel, Omri Miran, Eitan Mor and Guy Gilboa-Dallal.
It comes as Families and Tel Aviv residents gathered in hostages square with flags, banners and placards ahead of the release.
Speaking on Monday aboard Air Force One as he travelled to Israel on Monday, Donald Trump insisted: "The War Is Over".
The US President is set to address the Knesset - the Israeli parliament - on Monday, before travelling to Egypt to ratify the deal.
Follow live: Hamas releases first seven Israeli hostages after 738 days in captivity
The first stage of the deal, orchestrated by Donald Trump, will see 2,000 Palestinian prisoners released in exchange for the Israeli captives, who were kidnapped on October 7, 2023.
The deal, which took effect on Friday, also called for Israeli troops to begin their withdrawal from Gaza.
Trump went as far as to suggest he might visit Gaza one day in a speech aboard Air Force One.
It comes as US president and fellow negotiators, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, will sign off the peace plan in Sharm El Sheikh, joined by leaders from more than 20 countries.
It comes as Middle East minister Hamish Falconer told Nick Ferrari at Breakfast that the deal marked a "historic" day, with the government looking forward to the second phase of the deal.
"The Prime Minister in Egypt will be rightly focused not just on welcoming this absolutely exceptional news, but on working on the really important questions in relation to what we're calling phase two of the 20 point plan.
"That includes some really difficult questions about the disarmament of Hamas, the reconstruction of Gaza, ensuring aid gets in, and that's what I'm sure the Prime Minister will be heavily engaged in over the course of the day," he continued.
"I find it very difficult not to be hugely moved by what we're seeing today," he continued.
"These are historic moments. I will endeavour to play my full part, as will all the other members of the Government.
"But this is really a moment to savour, particularly for those hostage families and for those Palestinians."
The summit, co-hosted by the US leader and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, comes as part of efforts to secure the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that has been holding since Friday.
Mr Trump, who will first travel to Israel to meet with hostage families and address parliament there, said he was “very excited about this moment in time” before Air Force One took off.
The Palestinians have been moved from prisons in Israel on buses and are currently waiting until all Israeli hostages are released before being freed.
Many of those being held by Israel are children, while a large number are serving life sentences for violent crime.
None are believed to have been involved in the October 7 attacks.
Donald Trump will receive a "king's welcome" in Israel today, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, former Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, told LBC on Monday.
"The welcome of a king because there's an overwhelming feeling here that if he, well, certainly if he hadn't pressured Qatar and Turkey, who are essentially the sponsors, enablers, funders of Hamas, and said to them, the gig is up, if he wouldn't have done that, that wouldn't have happened.
"But also, again, he did it in such a unique style, he showed them a plate of goodies and said, look, this is what it means for you to be a real ally of America or, you know, trade deals and defence assurances and this is the liability of you, of you going with Hamas, of you keeping enabling Hamas."
It comes as White press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, shared a snap from Air Force One, captioning it: "History in the making."
The full list of living Israeli hostages released include:
Early on Monday, Hamas released the names of all living hostages to be returned, those are :
- Matan Angrest
- Gali Berman
- Ziv Berman
- Avinatan Or
- Elkana Bohbot
- Nimrod Cohen
- Yosef-Chaim Ohana
- Ariel Cunio
- David Cunio
- Matan Zangauker
- Evyatar David
- Guy Gilboa-Dalal
- Maxim Herkin
- Eitan Horn
- Segev Kalfon
- Alon Ohel
- Bar Abraham Kupershtein
- Omri Miran
- Eitan Abraham Mor
- Rom Braslavski