Israel declares victory as hostages due home

Erbil (Kurdistan24) – Israel on Sunday declared victory in its two-year war with Hamas, as the Palestinian group prepared to release its remaining hostages in what officials described as the defining step of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan. The announcement came just hours before Trump’s expected arrival in Israel and his joint chairing of the Sharm el-Sheikh Peace Summit with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Monday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it “an emotional evening, an evening of tears, an evening of joy,” expressing confidence that “tomorrow our children will return to our borders.” Citing a biblical verse, Netanyahu said Israel had achieved “tremendous victories that amazed the whole world,” while warning that “the fight is not over.”

Israel’s army chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, echoed the tone of triumph, declaring that “the military pressure we applied over the past two years, together with complementary diplomatic measures, constitute a victory over Hamas.”

Shosh Bedrosian, spokesperson for Netanyahu’s office, confirmed that the hostage release operation will begin early Monday, stating that Israel expects “all 20 of our living hostages to be released together at one time.”

President Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Israel shortly after the release to address the Israeli parliament before departing for Egypt, where he and President Sisi will co-chair the international “Sharm el-Sheikh for Peace” summit. The gathering, which will include leaders from more than twenty nations, aims to formally endorse Trump’s Gaza plan, consolidate the ceasefire, and advance a long-term Middle East peace framework.

“The summit will aim to end the war in Gaza, enhance peace and stability in the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional security,” the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

Under the Trump-brokered plan, once Hamas releases all surviving hostages, Israel will free around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange. However, late Sunday, two Hamas officials told AFP that the group was demanding the inclusion of seven senior Palestinian figures among those to be released—names that Israel had previously rejected.

Despite ongoing disputes, Hamas and its allies confirmed that they had “completed all preparations” for the handover of the remaining hostages.

The exchange will include 47 captives—both living and deceased—abducted during the group’s October 7, 2023 cross-border assault that killed 1,219 Israelis, mostly civilians. Hamas will also return the remains of an Israeli soldier killed in 2014 during a previous Gaza war.

In return, Israel will release 250 security prisoners, many convicted of deadly attacks, and 1,700 Gazans detained during the conflict.

The Sharm el-Sheikh summit is expected to draw UN Secretary-General António Guterres, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, and Jordan’s King Abdullah II, among others.

Neither Israeli nor Hamas representatives will attend, officials from both sides confirmed.

In Gaza, scenes of chaos and desperation accompanied the third day of the ceasefire, as aid trucks crossed into the territory. Residents in Khan Younis reported that food shipments were being ransacked by hungry civilians. “Everyone fears the war will return,” said local resident Mahmud al-Muzain. “We stockpile food out of fear and worry that the war will come back.”

Displaced Palestinians began returning to what remains of their homes. “My eyes kept searching for landmarks I had lost — nothing looked the same,” said Fatima Salem, 38, who returned to Gaza City to find entire neighborhoods destroyed.

In Israel, anticipation and emotion gripped families awaiting the return of their loved ones. Einav Zangauker, mother of 25-year-old hostage Matan Zangauker, described the atmosphere: “My emotions are immense, there are no words to describe them — for me, for us, for all of Israel, which wants the hostages home and waits to see them all return.”

Even as the ceasefire holds, questions remain about Gaza’s post-war future. Hamas has suffered devastating losses over the past two years, including the assassination of top leaders in Gaza and abroad, but has refused to surrender its arms.

A Hamas source told AFP that while the group “agrees to a long-term truce” and will refrain from using its weapons during this period, it will only do so “as long as Israel does not attack Gaza.”

Under Trump’s plan, as Israel withdraws from parts of Gaza, a multinational stabilization force will deploy under U.S. command from within Israel to oversee reconstruction and maintain order.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 67,806 people have been killed since the beginning of Israel’s campaign, a figure deemed credible by the United Nations. More than half of the dead are women and children, and thousands more remain missing under the rubble of destroyed neighborhoods.

As Israel celebrates what its leaders call a “historic victory,” the humanitarian toll in Gaza remains a somber reminder of the immense cost of war — and of the fragile peace now resting in the hands of negotiators gathering in Sharm el-Sheikh.