Trump Unveils Gaza Endgame; Netanyahu Backs Plan With 72-Hour Hostage Return
Here’s the big swing out of Washington: At the White House on Monday, President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled a plan to stop the Gaza war within days—built around a 72-hour return of all hostages, a phased Israel Defense Forces pullback, and a US-organized International Stabilization Force to secure the strip while a technocratic Palestinian committee restores services. Thank you to Miriam Metzinger for reporting that helped me track the moving parts. The blueprint bars Hamas from governance, pairs amnesty and safe passage with verified disarmament, and surges UN- and Red Crescent–managed aid through Rafah. A US-chaired “Board of Peace,” which could include former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, would steer reconstruction until a reformed Palestinian Authority can assume control.
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President Trump called it “a big, big day, a beautiful day, potentially one of the greatest days ever in civilization,” and warned: “If Hamas rejects the deal… you’d have our full backing to do what you would have to do.” Netanyahu backed the framework—“I support your plan to end the war in Gaza, which achieves our war aims… This can be done the easy way or it can be done the hard way”—while signaling a security perimeter “for the foreseeable future.” Inside Israel, Likud ministers praised “peace through strength,” Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said, “There will never be a Palestinian state,” and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid called it “the proper basis for a hostage deal and the end of the war.” France’s President Emmanuel Macron urged Israel to “engage resolutely.”
Roughly 50 Israelis remain captive, with about 20 believed to be alive. The deal would free them in exchange for 250 Palestinian lifers and 1,700 Gazans detained after Oct. 7, as well as the remains of around 450 Palestinian combatants killed in the fighting or in previous attacks on Israelis. I unpack the fine print, the risks around demilitarization, and the politics of a buffer that Israel will hold “for the foreseeable future”—read the full article for the stakes and scenarios.
