Hamas announces approval to release all Israeli captives under Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan

In a statement on Telegram, the Palestinian group said that “other issues raised in President Trump’s proposal concerning the future of the Gaza Strip and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people are tied to a unified national position based on relevant international laws and resolutions.”

A Palestinian source told Anadolu that Hamas has delivered its response to Trump’s plan to mediators and requested clarifications on some clauses.

Hamas indicated that it had conducted “in-depth consultations within its leadership institutions and broad consultations with Palestinian forces and factions, as well as with mediators and friends, to reach a responsible position in dealing with US President Donald Trump’s plan.”

It added that it values “the Arab, Islamic, and international efforts, as well as those of US President Donald Trump, calling for an end to the war on the Gaza Strip, a prisoner exchange, the immediate entry of aid, the rejection of the occupation of the Strip, and the rejection of the displacement of our Palestinian people from it.”

Hamas announced its agreement to “release all Israeli captives, both living and deceased, according to the exchange formula included in President Trump’s proposal, and with the necessary conditions on the ground for carrying out the exchange.” 

It affirmed its readiness to “immediately” enter, through mediators, into negotiations to discuss the details of the plan.

Israel estimates that 48 Israeli captives are in Gaza, including 20 alive, while around 11,100 Palestinians are held in its prisons, suffering from torture, starvation, and medical neglect, with many killed as a result, according to Palestinian and Israeli media and rights reports.

The movement also reiterated its approval to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian body of independent technocrats, “based on Palestinian national consensus and supported by Arab and Islamic backing.”

Earlier Friday, Trump gave Hamas until 6.00 pm Washington time (2200GMT) on Sunday to approve his plan regarding the Gaza Strip.

On Sept. 29, the White House issued a detailed plan calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, followed by a comprehensive program for reconstruction and a reorganization of the enclave’s political and security situation.

The plan seeks to turn Gaza into a weapons-free zone, with a transitional governance mechanism overseen directly by Trump through a new international body tasked with monitoring implementation.

It includes the release of all Israeli captives held by Hamas within 72 hours of approval, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

The plan stipulates halting hostilities, disarming the Palestinian resistance, and Israel’s gradual withdrawal from Gaza, to be governed by a technocratic authority under the supervision of an international body led by the US president.

Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza, home to nearly 2.4 million people, for nearly 18 years. It further tightened the siege in March when it closed border crossings and blocked food and medicine deliveries, pushing the enclave into famine.

Since October 2023, Israeli bombardment has killed nearly 66,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children. The UN and rights groups have repeatedly warned that the enclave is being rendered uninhabitable, with starvation and disease spreading rapidly amid widespread displacement. ​​​​​​​