‘War is over in Gaza’: Trump says as he sets off for Middle East to mark ceasefire deal and hostage release

“The war is over,” says @POTUS on his Gaza Peace Deal.

“I think [the ceasefire] is going to hold… I think people are tired.” pic.twitter.com/0qztDnxZmN

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 12, 2025

The deadline for Hamas to release all the hostages it is still holding in Gaza is midday (around 2:30pm IST) on Monday. Trump is poised to travel to Egypt on Monday in order to chair an international summit which aims to end the war in the Middle East. Trump would be joined by the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who is also chairing the global summit.

“The war is over, OK? I think people are tired of it,” Trump told reporters as he emphasized that the ceasefire would hold because of that. The US president believes that there is a narrow window to re-shape the Middle East and reset the relations between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

The war triggered after Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023 and killed over 1,200 people while taking another 251 as hostage. In retaliation, the Israeli military has killed over 67,000 people in Palestine, including more than 18,000 children, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry has said.

The first phase of Trump’s 20-point peace plan was agreed by Israel and Hamas last week which includes a ceasefire, release of hostages in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners, while Israeli forces withdraw to an agreed yellow line in the Gaza territory.

(with inputs from AP)