Trump to visit Israel on Monday for 4 hours, address Knesset, meet PM and hostage families

US President Donald Trump is set to arrive in Israel on Monday morning and address the Knesset before departing four hours later, in a visit that may coincide with the releases of Israeli hostages from Hamas captivity in Gaza under the ceasefire deal he helped broker.

He will deliver an address at the Knesset and will meet with the families of hostages, an Israeli official confirmed to The Times of Israel. There was a phone call between the Israeli and American teams on Friday, in which Trump’s team said it “would be an in and out” visit, said the official.

Trump is expected to land in Israel at 9:20 a.m. and depart at 1:00 p.m. Upon arrival, a brief ceremony will be held at Ben Gurion Airport before Trump proceeds to the Knesset, where he is scheduled to speak to the plenum at 11:00 a.m.

Prior to his speech, Trump will meet with Netanyahu in the premier’s Knesset office. The two leaders will then meet with families of hostages in the Knesset’s Chagall Hall.

The timeline is limited by the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, which begins on Monday evening, and marks the second anniversary, on the Hebrew calendar, of the Hamas invasion and massacre that launched the war on October 7, 2023.

Following his speech, Trump will head back to the airport for departure to Egypt, where he will co-chair a “peace summit” in Sharm el-Sheikh with President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, attended by a roster of world leaders.

Trump will not stop by Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, despite an invitation by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum to speak there, due to security reasons, the official said.

The Kan public broadcaster said that Trump was initially supposed to arrive on Sunday, but the trip was pushed off by a day due to the logistical difficulties of organizing it at such short notice.

After announcing that Israel and Hamas agreed to the “first stage” of his proposed peace deal, Trump on Thursday said he planned to leave for the Middle East on Sunday and hoped to be in Israel when the hostages are released on Monday or Tuesday.

Under the first phase, which the government ratified Thursday night, Israel was required to stage an initial withdrawal from Gaza, prompting Hamas to release the hostages within 72 hours of the pullback. In exchange, Israel will release nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 serving life terms for security offenses.

The IDF said it completed the withdrawal by noon on Friday, meaning the hostages should be released by noon on Monday.

Israel on Thursday began preparations for Trump’s visit, with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana extending him a formal invitation to address the parliament.

It will be Trump’s first visit to Israel since he returned to the White House in January. He previously visited Israel in 2017, on his first international trip as president during his first term.

Monday’s visit comes as both supporters and critics of Israel’s government have heaped praise on the US president for his efforts in securing the Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal.

Terror groups in Gaza still hold 47 of the 251 hostages abducted during the Hamas-led massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. At least 26 have been confirmed dead by the IDF. Hamas is also holding the remains of a soldier killed fighting in Gaza in 2014. The terror group has said it would take longer than 72 hours to return the remains of the slain hostages due to field conditions.