WORLDWIDE SUPPORT FOR END TO “TERRIBLE WAR”
Netanyahu’s office said Israel was preparing for “immediate implementation” of the first stage of Trump’s Gaza plan for the release of Israeli hostages following Hamas’ response.
Shortly after, Israeli media reported that the country’s political echelon had instructed the military to reduce offensive activity in Gaza.
Trump’s plan and Hamas’ reaction won support around the world, from Australia to India to Canada and European capitals.
“An end to this terrible war is within reach,” said Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof.
Hamas responded to Trump’s 20-point plan after the US president gave the group until Sunday to accept or face grave consequences.
Trump, who has cast himself as the only person capable of achieving peace in Gaza, has invested significant political capital in efforts to end the war that has left US ally Israel increasingly isolated on the world stage.
Trump said on Friday he believed Hamas had shown it was “ready for a lasting PEACE” and he put the onus on Netanyahu’s government. “Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Domestically, the prime minister is caught between growing pressure to end the war — from hostage families and a war-weary public — and demands from hardline members of his coalition who insist there must be no let-up in Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
Israel began attacking Gaza after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Israel says 48 hostages remain, 20 of whom are alive.
Israel’s campaign has killed more than 67,000 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities.
“It’s time to end this horrific war and bring every single hostage back home. We are for rebuilding and the rehabilitation,” said Efrat Machikawa, an active member of Israel’s hostage families forum and the niece of Gadi Moses, a hostage who was released in January.
“We’re fed up with the war. We don’t want any revenge. We want to concentrate on life.”
