Trump Says Israel Accepted 'Withdrawal Line’, Hamas Confirmation Would Trigger Immediate Ceasefire

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said Israel had agreed to an “initial withdrawal line” for Gaza, setting the stage for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. He said that the ceasefire will be reached "immediately" once Hamas confirms.

Trump said, “After negotiations, Israel has agreed to the initial withdrawal line, which we have shown to and shared with Hamas. 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!”

The announcement followed Trump’s order on Friday (October 3) directing Israel to “immediately” stop bombing Gaza after Hamas agreed to release all hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. On Saturday, Israeli army radio reported that the military had been ordered to halt its campaign in Gaza City. However, Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israel had continued to carry out dozens of airstrikes and artillery shelling in the area.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump also shared an image showing Israel’s initial withdrawal and the planned stages of hostage release. He said the plan, once confirmed, would initiate “the next phase of withdrawal,” intended to move both sides “close to the end of this 3,000-year catastrophe.”

The White House Press Secretary earlier reposted a video of Trump thanking Arab nations for backing his peace plan. “I want to thank the countries that helped me put this together. Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and so many others. So many people fought so hard. This is a big day. We’ll see how it all turns out. We have to get the final word down in concrete. Very importantly, I look forward to having the hostages come home to their parents and having some of the hostages, unfortunately, you know the condition they’re in, come home likewise to their parents because their parents wanted them just as much as though that young man or young woman were alive. So I just want to let you know that this is a very special day, maybe unprecedented in many ways,” Trump said in the video.

He further praised the unity shown by the nations involved, saying, “It is unprecedented, but thank you all and thank you all to those great countries that helped. We were given a tremendous amount of help. Everybody was unified in wanting this war to end and seeing peace in the Middle East. And we’re very close to achieving that. Thank you all, and everybody will be treated fairly.”

The US President also spoke of a conversation he had with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the proposal took place.

“I said: ‘Bibi (Netanyahu), this is your chance for victory.’ He was fine with it,” Trump told Axios. “He’s got to be fine with it. He has no choice. With me, you got to be fine.”

Trump told Axios: “We had great receptivity for our plan – every country of the world in favor. Bibi is in favor. Hamas went a long way – they want to do it. Now we will need to close it.”

He also credited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his role in persuading Hamas to release hostages. “Erdoğan helped a lot. He is a tough guy, but he is a friend of mine and he was great,” Trump said.

According to the White House plan, the agreement envisions an immediate ceasefire, the exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israel, a staged Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, Hamas’s disarmament and the establishment of a transitional government under an international body.

Trump added that he intended to help restore Israel’s international standing. “Bibi took it very far and Israel lost a lot of support in the world. Now I am gonna get all that support back,” he said.

(with inputs from The Hindu and The Guardian)