Trump discloses Israel’s halt of bombing in Gaza, urges Hamas to move quickly

Washington: Israel has temporarily stopped the bombing in the Gaza Strip to give hostage release and the 20-point peace deal a chance to be completed, according to US President Donald Trump on Truth Social.

“Hamas must move quickly, or else all bets will be off,” he said in a Truth Social post. “I will not tolerate delay … Let’s get this done, FAST.”

In a separate post on Saturday, the president said that after negotiations, Israel has agreed to the initial withdrawal line, which has been shown to Hamas, Xinhua news agency reported.

“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,” he added.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he hopes to announce the release of all hostages from Gaza “in the coming days” as indirect talks with Hamas continued in Egypt on Monday on a new US plan to end the war.

In a brief statement late Saturday, Netanyahu mentioned he has sent a delegation to Egypt “to finalize technical details,” adding that “our goal is to contain these negotiations to a timeframe of a few days.”

On Friday, Trump said that Hamas must accept the 20-point peace plan on Gaza by 6 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Sunday, otherwise “all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas.” Hamas announced later that it had accepted the proposal in principle and was ready to open mediated talks, a response broadly welcomed by the international community, which urged both sides to seize the chance to end the war and ease civilian suffering.

The 20-point plan outlines a ceasefire-for-hostages deal, a phased Israeli withdrawal, a demilitarised Gaza, and international oversight of Gaza’s reconstruction and governance after the end of the conflict. Hamas will be excluded from the governance structure.

Under the ceasefire terms, Israel will halt military actions and pull back to the agreed lines. Hamas, within 72 hours of Israel publicly accepting the agreement, must release all hostages, alive and deceased. In return, Israel will free 250 life sentence prisoners plus 1,700 Gazans who were detained after October 7, 2023.

Disarmed Hamas members who commit to peaceful coexistence will be given amnesty and those who wish to leave Gaza will be provided safe passage to receiving countries.

IANS