The U.S. President spoke with journalists before departing for Israel for the scheduled hostage releases.
U.S. President Donald Trump informed reporters on Sunday that the war in Gaza “is over.”
He had just boarded Air Force One, taking off for Israel in anticipation of the hostage releases set for tomorrow.
Trump is slated to address Israel’s parliament, as well as meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the families of the hostages. Subsequently, leaders from more than 20 countries will join the U.S. president in Egypt for a summit focusing on Gaza’s future. Representatives from Israel and Hamas will not be present at this ceremony.
”The war is over. Okay? You understand that?” Trump stated when questioned about his confidence that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group had concluded.
Trump will be accompanied on his visit to the region by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, along with numerous other high-ranking administration officials.
“Everybody’s very excited about this moment in time. This is a very special event…Everybody’s cheering at one time. That’s never happened before,” he conveyed to reporters.
According to the agreement unveiled by President Trump in late September, all 48 Israeli hostages, both deceased and alive, will be recovered from the enclave. The Israeli army expects to receive living hostages around 8 a.m. Monday from three sites in Gaza, with the bodies of deceased hostages anticipated later. Israel, in turn, is required to free 250 Palestinians serving life sentences and 1,700 Gazans detained since 2023.