Cease-fire, hostage swaps, and what’s next: Explaining a pivotal day in the Israel-Hamas conflict

Historic Ceasefire in Gaza

The last 20 living Israeli hostages held in Gaza were released on Monday in two groups, ending more than two years of captivity. Scenes of relief and celebration unfolded at the Re’im military facility in southern Israel and in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, where crowds cheered as families embraced loved ones returning from Gaza, CNN reported.

Remains repatriated

Alongside the releases, Israeli authorities said four coffins believed to contain the remains of deceased hostages were transferred to the Red Cross and taken to Tel Aviv’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification. Officials have not yet confirmed the identities.

Palestinian detainees return

Israel freed 1,718 Palestinian detainees held without charge in Gaza over the past two years, bused back into the strip to large crowds at Nasser Hospital in the south. A further 250 Palestinians serving long sentences were released, with many arriving to family welcomes in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Deportations spark debate

An additional 154 Palestinian prisoners serving long terms were deported to Egypt, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, reflecting Israel’s demand that some convicted of violent offenses be sent to third countries rather than return to Gaza or the West Bank.

Trump’s pointed message in Jerusalem

Addressing Israel’s Knesset, US President Donald Trump hailed the cease-fire as a “historic dawn” and urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to restart the war. Arguing Israel had “won all that they can by force of arms,” he framed the task ahead as translating battlefield gains into “peace and prosperity” across the region.

Summit diplomacy in Egypt

Trump then joined leaders from Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, France, Germany and the UK in Sharm el-Sheikh for a signing ceremony and talks on implementing the 20-point truce plan. Netanyahu, invited to the summit, did not attend.

Governance and disarmament remain open

Key details are still unsettled: who governs Gaza after the war, how Hamas’s disarmament would occur, and the sequencing of an Israeli military withdrawal. The agreement ties full withdrawal to disarmament, leaving room for Israel to argue it can resume operations if security threats re-emerge.

Hamas’s future is the central test

Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya has cited mediator “guarantees” that the war is permanently over, though the terms haven’t been publicly detailed. Analysts say any pathway to Palestinian statehood envisioned by the deal will hinge on Hamas’s role—or absence—in a postwar Gaza security and governance architecture.

Regional players step in

Egypt and Turkey are expected to be central to any transition, from border management and aid distribution to training and oversight of new policing structures. For now, all sides are under pressure to make the plan work and to keep aid corridors open.

Fragile calm, long road ahead

With hostages home and thousands of Palestinians released, the cease-fire’s immediate goals have been met. But the durability of this calm depends on answers to the hardest questions—Gaza’s governance, Hamas’s disarmament, and Israel’s exit—now pushed to the front of a delicate diplomatic queue.