Israel, Hamas Agree to US Peace Plan, Trump Orders Israel to Halt Attacks

Israel and Hamas have agreed to move ahead with US President Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan, but the US and Gaza are still waiting on Israel to halt attacks.

After years of continued conflict and months of stalled negotiations, Israel and Hamas both agreed to Trump's peace plan this week, illuminating a possible end to the seemingly infinite tunnel of the Israel-Hamas War.

Trump's plan, which was sent out to both sides on Monday, consists of 20 main points that outline the process to end the war and actions that will be taken afterwards. Firstly, when both sides formally agree to the proposal, the war will come to an immediate end, with military operations coming to a complete stop. Israeli forces will withdraw from Gaza to the border line, where hostage exchanges will take place.

Within 72 hours of the end of the war, Hamas will return all hostages (alive or dead) to Israel; in exchange, Israel will release 250 life sentence prisoners and over 1,700 Gazans that were arrested after October 7, 2023. Additionally, for each Israeli hostage whose body is returned, Israel will release the bodies of 15 dead Gazans.

Additionally, as soon as the proposal is accepted, all aid restrictions will be immediately lifted, allowing full aid into Gaza to assist with the humanitarian crisis, rebuilding crucial infrastructure, and energy generation. This aid distribution will be completely controlled by the United Nations, Red Crescent, and other organizations, with Israel and Hamas having no say in the process.

Among the other key points is that Hamas members that agree to unaffiliate themselves with the organization will be allowed to leave Palestine and move to other countries– a stark difference from Israel's goal to eliminate each and every Hamas member.

These first few points make up the first stage of the plan, which goes on to detail a two-state solution, establish proper authority in Palestine, and ensure lasting peace between the two nations. However, these later stages have drawn criticism from Hamas and Israel, and they will likely require further negotiations if they are to be approved.

Nevertheless, Hamas has expressed their willingness to return all hostages in exchange for an immediate end to the war, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also supported the first stage of the plan. Israel still needs to pass the plan in a formal cabinet vote, though, which could extend the process by some time.

Furthermore, Hamas confirmed that they are willing to "enter immediately" into negotiations to "discuss the details," hinting that there still may be some small parts of the proposal that are yet to be refined. Qatar and Egypt have already announced that they are ready to host negotiations whenever both sides are ready, signaling the Middle East's strong desire to end the war as soon as possible.

Because of this, Israel has continued bombing Hamas while they discuss the proposal, forcing Trump to call for a halt to the fighting. Trump has stated that Israel's continuing attacks have made it too hard to rescue the hostages, and the conflict must stop before the plan can commence.

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Image credit to AFP