Update(1608ET): Late Friday evening Hamas has announced it has agreed to release all of the Israeli hostages as well as the bodies of those who had died. This is in direct response to President Trump’s peace proposal, contained in the 20-point plan released by the White House earlier this week. According to the breaking announcement via the NY Times:

In a statement posted online on Friday night, the armed group said it would release the hostages “according to the exchange formula contained in President Trump’s proposal, and as the field conditions for the exchange are met.”

“In this context, the movement affirms its readiness to immediately enter into negotiations through the mediators to discuss these details,” the group added.

But as the wording suggests, there will be more hurdles to go as the group enters fresh “negotiations”. Trump had earlier said there’s little room for this, but it’s unlikely that Hamas will sign on to all points of the White House plan. Additionally, it remains to be seen whether the IDF will engage in a ‘partial withdrawal’ from the Strip, as the plan calls for.

Nevertheless, at this early moment in entering the new deal, this is the first positive news out of Gaza in a long time, and the US administration is likely to hail it as a major victory going into the weekend.

Top Breaking

Hamas officially responds to Trump’s Gaza plan

▶️Appreciates Trump’s efforts to end the war

▶️Agrees to release ALL Israeli hostages, dead and alive

▶️Agrees to negotiate details of the plan

▶️Agrees to hand over Gaza administration to ‘Palestinian body of… pic.twitter.com/71kCsmaUVb

— Rizwan Ghilzai (Remembering Arshad Sharif) (@rizwanghilzai) October 3, 2025

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As previously reported by Jackson Richman of The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), President Donald Trump has given Hamas until Oct. 5 to accept a deal to end the war between the terrorist group and Israel and release all the hostages. Trump announced the deadline in a post on Truth Social on Oct. 3.

“An Agreement must be reached with Hamas by Sunday Evening at SIX (6) P.M., Washington, D.C. time. Every Country has signed on! If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas. THERE WILL BE PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST ONE WAY OR THE OTHER,” Trump wrote in his post.

“Hamas has been a ruthless and violent threat, for many years, in the Middle East! They have killed (and made lives unbearably miserable), culminating with the October 7th MASSACRE, in Israel, babies, woman, children, old people, and many young men and women, boys and girls, getting ready to celebrate their future lives together. As retribution for the October 7th attack on civilization, more than 25,000 Hamas ‘soldiers’ have already been killed. Most of the rest are surrounded and MILITARILY TRAPPED, just waiting for me to give the word, ‘GO,’ for their lives to be quickly extinguished. As for the rest, we know where and who you are, and you will be hunted down, and killed.”

Trump also called on Palestinians to go to safe parts of Gaza.

“I am asking that all innocent Palestinians immediately leave this area of potentially great future death for safer parts of Gaza. Everyone will be well cared for by those that are waiting to help,” Trump said, adding that his warning is “one last chance.”

Israel has accepted a 20-point plan put forward by the United States to end the war.

The plan includes deradicalizing Gaza and making it a terror-free zone; redeveloping Gaza; releasing alive and deceased hostages within 72 hours of Israel agreeing to the plan; immediately ending the war; Israel releasing 250 life-sentenced prisoners and 1,700 Gazans who were detained after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas; and sending humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Gaza would be governed by a technocratic and apolitical Palestinian committee subject to oversight by a “Board of Peace” chaired by Trump and comprising heads of state as well as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Also, under the plan, no one would be forced to leave Gaza.

Additionally, Hamas would have no role in Gaza and its administration, and all terrorist infrastructure would be destroyed.

An International Stabilization Force would be deployed to Gaza to “train and provide support to vetted Palestinian police forces in Gaza, and consult with Jordan and Egypt, who have extensive experience in this field,” according to the plan.