JERUSALEM – In a moment of profound relief and global jubilation, Hamas released the final group of 20 living Israeli hostages on Monday, October 13, 2025, marking the complete liberation of all captives held since the October 7, 2023, terror attacks that ignited the devastating Gaza war. The handover, executed at a Red Cross site in Khan Younis under the watchful eyes of international mediators, fulfilled the first phase of President Donald Trump’s audacious 20-point peace plan, a diplomatic coup that has reshaped the Middle East and silenced even his fiercest critics.
The hostages—ranging from young soldiers like 19-year-old Bar Kupershtein to elderly civilians such as 85-year-old Yosef-Chaim Ohana—emerged gaunt but alive, waving to cheering crowds as Israeli medics rushed them to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva for reunions and checkups. “After 731 days of hell, they’re home—every single one,” declared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a tearful Knesset address, crediting Trump’s “unrelenting pressure” for the breakthrough. Families, who had camped vigil outside Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square, erupted in song and embrace, with one mother, Anat Angrest, whose son Matan was among the first freed, posting: “Only Trump could do that. Thank you—from the depths of our souls.”
Trump’s plan, unveiled September 29 after shuttle diplomacy in Cairo and Doha, demanded Hamas’s full hostage release in exchange for Israel’s phased withdrawal from 53% of Gaza, the freeing of nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees, and an immediate aid influx rebuilding shattered infrastructure. Mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and U.S. envoy Jared Kushner, it overcame a September airstrike setback and Hamas’s initial tweaks on disarmament. “Promises made, promises kept—no more games,” Trump beamed from the Oval Office, flanked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Even Hillary Clinton, in a CBS interview, called it “a significant first step,” while CNN’s Jake Tapper labeled it “the deal Biden couldn’t close.”
Yet fragility persists: Phase two—Hamas’s disarmament and a transitional Palestinian authority—looms by November, with Israeli hardliners like Itamar Ben-Gvir vowing resistance. Global leaders, from France’s Emmanuel Macron to Germany’s Friedrich Merz, urged swift implementation to avert famine. For 48 families, though, the nightmare ends. Trump’s feat—freeing all living souls where others faltered—cements his legacy as peacemaker. In a divided world, this reunion whispers hope: Even the impossible yields to will.
