Hostages may be freed as early as Saturday in Gaza deal

Maayan Lubell | October 9, 2025

Israeli hostages might be released as early as Saturday under a US plan to end the war in Gaza and the country’s military will complete the first part of a partial withdrawal from the enclave within 24 hours of the deal being signed.

The signing of the agreement on the first stage of US President Donald Trump’s initiative for Gaza is expected to take place at noon, Israel time, on Thursday (8pm AEDT), a source briefed on details of the agreement said. 

Israelis and Palestinians rejoiced after Trump announced that a ceasefire and hostage deal was reached under the first phase of his plan to end a war in Gaza that has killed more than 67,000 people and reshaped the Middle East. 

A day after the second anniversary of Hamas militants’ cross-border attack that triggered Israel’s devastating assault on Gaza, indirect talks in Egypt yielded an agreement on the initial stage of Trump’s 20-point framework.

The accord, if fully implemented, would bring the two sides closer than any previous effort to halt a war that evolved into a regional conflict, drawing in countries such as Iran, Yemen and Lebanon.

But the agreement announced by Trump late on Wednesday was short on detail and left many unresolved questions that could yet lead to its collapse. 

“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Trump said on Truth Social.

“This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.”

Successful completion of the deal would mark a significant foreign policy achievement for the Republican president, who had campaigned on bringing peace to major world conflicts but has struggled to swiftly deliver, both in Gaza and on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene his government on Thursday to approve the agreement, which he hailed as a “a diplomatic success and a national and moral victory for the State of Israel”.

The conflict upended the Middle East in Israel’s favour after it assassinated the leaders of Tehran-backed Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah and killed top Iranian commanders and pounded Yemen’s Houthis.

But global outrage has mounted against Israel’s assault, with rights experts, scholars and a UN inquiry saying it amounts to genocide. 

Israel calls its actions self-defence after the 2023 Hamas attack.

Hamas confirmed it had reached an agreement, which included an Israeli withdrawal from the enclave and an exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners.

“We affirm that the sacrifices of our people will not be in vain, and that we will remain true to our pledge – never abandoning our people’s national rights until freedom, independence, and self-determination are achieved,” Hamas said. 

Gaza authorities say more than 67,000 people have been killed and much of the enclave has been flattened since Israel began its military response to the Hamas cross-border attack on October 7, 2023.

About 1200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage back to Gaza, according to Israeli officials, with 20 of the 48 hostages still held believed to be alive.

A Hamas source said the living hostages would be handed over within 72 hours of the Israeli government approving the deal. 

Hamas officials insist it will take longer to recover the bodies of dead hostages, believed to number about 28, from Gaza’s rubble.

The Islamist group has refused to discuss Israel’s demand that it give up its arms, which it will reject as long as Israeli troops occupied Palestinian land.

The next phase of Trump’s plan calls for an international body led by Trump and including former British prime minister Tony Blair to play a role in Gaza’s postwar administration.

Arab countries that back the plan say it must lead to eventual independence for a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu says will never happen.

There is no clear indication who will rule Gaza when the war ends, with Netanyahu, Trump, Western and Arab states ruling out a role for Hamas, which has run Gaza since driving out Palestinian rivals in 2007.