Israel readies for brief Trump visit in coming days after signing of Gaza deal
Following announcement of ceasefire-hostage agreement, US president set to make quick trip, likely on Sunday; PM invites him to address Knesset, families ask him to speak at Hostages Square
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Israel began preparations on Thursday for US President Donald Trump’s expected visit next week, following the announcement that Israel and Hamas have signed off on the “first phase” of his plan to secure the release of all hostages and ultimately end the Gaza war.
Trump said on Thursday that he plans to leave for the Middle East on Sunday and hopes to be in Israel when the hostages are released on Monday or Tuesday. “The hostages will be coming back Monday or Tuesday,” he said while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office alongside Finland’s president. “I’ll probably be there. I hope to be there. We’re planning on leaving sometime Sunday and I look forward to it. I see you’re celebrating in Israel, but they’re celebrating in many other countries too.”
The American leader’s visit to Israel is “in the cards,” an Israeli official told The Times of Israel earlier, adding that “discussions are ongoing.”
According to the Kan public broadcaster, Trump is currently slated to land at 3 p.m. on Sunday, where he will take part in a ceremony at Ben Gurion Airport. There would also be ceremonies at the Knesset and at the Western Wall.
He is tentatively scheduled to take off at 11 p.m. Sunday night.
Trump had said Wednesday, before the deal was reached, that he planned to visit the Middle East if an agreement was made: “We’ll be leaving, probably on Sunday, maybe Saturday.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held an “emotional and warm” phone call with Trump after Hamas agreed to the hostage-release phase of the US president’s deal for ending the war in Gaza, according to the premier’s office, which said Netanyahu invited the American leader to address the Knesset.
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana issued a formal invitation on Thursday, and the Knesset was lit up in red, white and blue in the president’s honor.
In a letter to Trump, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum also invited the US president to speak, at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, saying, “We would be deeply honored if you would meet with us during your upcoming visit to Israel.”
“We simply need the opportunity to look you in the eye and express what words alone cannot fully convey: that you gave us back our families, and with them, our hope,” the letter continued.
Trump has yet to respond to the forum’s request.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid endorsed the forum’s call, writing on X, “There is nothing more fitting, more symbolic, more moving than a speech by President Trump in Hostages Square with the return home of our hostages. It would be a historic moment. I congratulate the families on the initiative.”
Hostages Square was flooded with Israelis praising the American leader on Thursday morning.
“We understood that Trump would bring back the hostages, and that’s what happened, unfortunately,” one attendee said. “We trusted our own government, but God wanted this, and Trump gave it a big push for things to happen here.”
Ynet reported that the US president and his team would be expected to stay in Jerusalem’s King David Hotel, which regularly hosts international delegations, often acting as the official hotel for visiting heads of state, diplomats, and other guests of the Israeli government.
According to the report, the delegation would require two floors of the hotel, and guests will need to be evicted to accommodate Trump’s stay.
Trump announced the expected signing of the deal on Truth Social on Wednesday night after days of negotiations in Egypt.
In an interview with “Hannity” on Fox News, the US president said the 48 hostages still held captive in Gaza would “probably be released on Monday,” touting the “tremendous help” from members of his administration in getting the deal over the finish line.
Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are holding 48 hostages, including 47 of the 251 abducted by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. They include the bodies of at least 26 confirmed dead by the IDF. Twenty are believed to be alive and there are grave concerns for the well-being of the two others, Israeli officials have said. Among the bodies held by Hamas is an IDF soldier killed in Gaza in 2014.
A top official within Hamas said Israel would release nearly 2,000 Palestinian security prisoners in exchange for the around 20 living hostages as part of the deal. The figure includes 250 terror convicts serving life sentences and 1,700 others detained since the start of the war.
Senior Hamas official Izzat al-Risheq said in a statement that “the ceasefire is the fruit of the tremendous sacrifices and the legendary patience of our people, as well as the strength and steadfastness of the resistance.”
Upon Trump’s announcement of the ceasefire deal, Gazans took to the streets to celebrate, with people in the enclave weeping and chanting, “Allahu Akbar” (“God is Greatest”), voicing hopes that the deal would end the war and let them return to their homes.
Jacob Magid and agencies contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.