President Donald Trump was heckled by two left-wing MPs during his speech to the Israeli parliament after declaring “the historic dawn of a new Middle East”.
Footage showed Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif being escorted out by security guards after they shouted in Hebrew at Trump, who was addressing parliament hours after the release of all 20 hostages.
The Times of Israel reported that the pair were holding signs calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
Wild celebrations erupted in Tel Aviv as the US president arrived to a hero’s welcome, with Knesset speaker Amir Ohana declaring Trump a “giant” of Jewish history.
Addressing the Israeli parliament, Trump said: “After so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace.
“This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.”
Trump will greet the families of the hostages in Jerusalem before flying to a “peace summit” in Egypt's Sharm-el Sheikh, where his ceasefire deal will be signed.
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Key Points
- Israeli MPs stage pro-Palestine protest during Trump speech
- Trump declares 'historic dawn of a new Middle East'
- Israel confirms all 20 living hostages and captives have been released by Hamas
- Emotional scenes as freed Palestinians detainees arrive in Ramallah
- First pictures emerge of released Israeli hostages
- What's going on in Egypt today - and who is attending the summit?
Pictured: Moment MPs escorted from Israeli parliament after protest
12:45
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Alex Croft
Trump says 'long nightmare' finally over for Israelis and Palestinians
12:42
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Alex Croft
Trump has told Israeli parliamentarians that a "long nightmare" was finally over for Israelis and Palestinians alike after the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal was agreed between Israel and Hamas.
"The forces of chaos that have plagued the region are totally defeated," he said in a speech before Israel's parliament.
“We’ve achieved the most challenging breakthrough of them all, the most challenging breakthrough maybe ever,” he said.
The US president then described the war in the Middle East as the “grandaddy of them all”, declaring that it is “finally over”.
In pictures: Palestinians and Israelis reunite with loved ones
12:34
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Alex Croft
Israeli MPs stage pro-Palestine protest during Trump speech
12:20
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Alex Croft
Two MPs in the Israeli Knesset has appeared to stage a short protest during Donald Trump’s speech in the Israeli Knesset.
Shouting erupted in the hall before the MPs was escorted out.
Knesset members Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif were removed from the hall after raising a sign reading "genocide” during Trump’s speech, according to the Clash Report.
Samuel Sokol, a political reporter for The Times of Israel, said they were holding signs calling to “recognise Palestine”.
Mr Odeh and Mr Cassif are part of the left-wing Haddash coalition, which has been highly critical of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
Hadash-Ta’al MKs Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif removed from Trump’s speech after holding up signs calling to “recognize Palestine.”
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) October 13, 2025
Trump quips that the ejection was “very efficient.” pic.twitter.com/0tvs7JbSAS
Trump declares 'historic dawn of a new Middle East'
12:11
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Alex Croft
Donald Trump has declared a “historic dawn of a new Middle East” in an address to the Israeli Knesset.
“After so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace,” he said.
“This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.
“It is an incredible triumph for Israel and the world to have all of these nations working together as partners in peace. Generations from now, this will be remembered as the moment that everything began to change.”
Analysis | Israel’s Knesset has declared Trump the Middle East’s peacemaker-in-chief – but it’s not quite so simple
12:07
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Alex Croft
World leaders, diplomatic insiders, and much of the media are celebrating a ceasefire in Gaza calling it a “peace deal” and endorsing President Donald Trump’s now unsuccessful campaign for a Nobel Peace Prize.
After the release of all the living Israeli hostages by Hamas, Benjamin Netanyahu and the Knesset cheered the arrival of the US president in Israel, heaping platitude after platitude on him, claiming that his election meant that “overnight, everything changed”.
US secretary of state Marc Rubio insisted the turning point came when Trump convened meetings with Arab and Muslim leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September.
Our world affairs editor Sam Kiley writes:
UN chief says he is 'profoundly relieved'
11:57
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Alex Croft
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres says he is "profoundly relieved" that the Israeli hostages in Gaza have regained their freedom and will be reunited with their families after the "immense suffering" they have endured.
Mr Guterres reiterated his call for the release of the remains of the deceased hostages. The statement was issued from Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where world leaders were gathering to throw their weight behind the Gaza ceasefire deal.
"I urge all parties to build on this momentum and to honour their commitments under the ceasefire to end the nightmare in Gaza," he said.
"The United Nations is working to support all efforts to end the conflict in Gaza and alleviate the suffering of civilians."
Starmer meets Palestinian president Abbas in Egypt
11:56
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Alex Croft
'I'm committed to this peace', says Netanyahu
11:46
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Alex Croft
Netanyahu is still addressing the Israeli Knesset. He has thanked the US for its “bold decision” during the 12-day conflict with Iran.
He said the US president’s peace proposal was a "pivotal" step towards peace, and added: "I'm committed to this peace, you are committed to this peace, and together we will achieve this peace."
After Trump became president in January “everything changed overnight”, he added.
“Thanks to your unequivocal backing of Israel, we secured a second hostage deal within weeks of your election.
“In the months that followed, we worked closely together to forge a path to bring the remaining hostages home, end the war in a way that ensures the disarming of Hamas, the demilitarisation of Gaza, and that Gaza would never again pose a threat to Israel,” Netanyahu added.
Starmer says he shares 'deep feeling of relief' with families of Israeli hostages
11:42
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Alex Croft
Our political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:
Sir Keir Starmer has said he shares the “deep feeling of relief” with the families of Israeli hostages released by Hamas, adding it was now “crucial” to implement Donald Trump’s peace plan in the Middle East.
Speaking about Avintan Or, who was released today, the PM said: "This is also a stark reminder of the treatment that he has been subject to at the hands of Hamas, and the atrocities that shook the world two years ago.
"Having met his family, I know that no one can truly understand the torture and agony they suffered for two drawn out years and my thoughts are with them. My thoughts are also with the family of Yossi Sharabi, who are still waiting for news."
He added: "I reiterate my thanks for the tireless diplomatic efforts of the United States, Egypt, Qatar and Türkiye. It is now crucial that we work together to implement President Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, and that will be my focus in Egypt today.
"Commitment to this plan from all parties will be essential to ending the war and building the foundations for a sustainable path to a long-term peace. The UK will support the crucial next stage of talks to ensure the implementation of the peace plan."
Donald Trump unsure whether Tony Blair would be ‘popular’ choice for Gaza role
11:36
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Alex Croft
Donald Trump has questioned whether Sir Tony Blair would serve on a new “Board of Peace” that is intended to oversee the governance of Gaza, amid ongoing criticisms of the former prime minister for his role in the Iraq war.
Sir Tony, who met the deputy chief of the Palestinian Authority on Sunday, took the UK into the controversial Iraq war in 2003 and then served as Middle East envoy for the quartet of international powers – the US, the EU, Russia and the UN – after leaving office.
Earlier this month, Mr Trump unveiled a 20-point peace plan for the Middle East, saying Sir Tony would be among a group of international leaders that would oversee a transitional governing committee for Gaza.
But asked whether he had spoken with Sir Tony about the possibility of his involvement in the peace plan, the US president told reporters: “I have, but first I want to find out that Tony would be popular with all, because I just don’t know that.
“I like Tony, I have always liked Tony. But I want to find out that he is an acceptable choice to everybody.”
Palestinian detainees reunite with families following release from Israeli prison
11:33
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Alex Croft
Netanyahu: Trump is the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House
11:32
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Alex Croft
Benjamin Netanyahu is now addressing parliament, where he is lavishing praise on Donald Trump.
He thanked Trump for recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, for recognising the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as Israeli territory, and for “recognising in your 2020 peace plan our rights in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank], the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people”.
He also thanks Trump for ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’, the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities during the summer.
“Donald Trump is the greatest friend that the State of Israel has ever had in the White House,” Netanyahu added.
Crowds gather as first buses of freed Palestinian detainees reach Ramallah
11:26
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Alex Croft
Israeli PMs office says Netanyahu will no longer travel to Egypt for summit
11:25
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Alex Croft
Israeli prime minister Netanyahu's office says he will not travel to Egypt for summit due to Jewish holiday.
An Egyptian presidential spokesperson had previously said that “both Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will take part in the peace summit to solidify the agreement to end the war in Gaza and reaffirm their commitment to it”.
Our White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg had reported that Netanyahu decided to go following a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, along with Donald Trump, while they were in Israel on Monday.
Donald Trump addresses the Israeli Knesset
11:03
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Alex Croft
US president Donald Trump has arrived in the Israeli Knesset, ready for his speech to Israeli parliamentarians.
Cheers erupted through the room as Donald Trump received a lengthy standing ovation.
The speaker of the parliament is now listing the members of the US delegation in the room, each of whom received a standing ovation.
Chants of “Witkoff, Witkoff” were heard after US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s name was read out.
Netanyahu decided to go to peace summit after Trump called Egyptian president
10:59
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Alex Croft
The Independent’s White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg reports:
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's last-minute decision to attend the peace summit taking place in Egypt today came after President Donald Trump placed a call to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi with Netanyahu present.
A White House official said Trump "brokered the call" and stressed that Netanyahu is now going at el-Sisi's invitation.
In pictures: Hostages arrive back in Israel
10:58
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Alex Croft
Emotional scenes as first buses of freed Palestinians detainees arrive in Ramallah
10:56
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Alex Croft
In Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank The Independent’s Rateb Qaissy is waiting with anxious families of those who are slated to be released today.
There were emotional scenes as families who have struggled to get hold of any information have started to receive phone calls telling them the buses are on their way from Ofer prison.
Amid the large crowds gathered outside a cultural centre that has become the reunion post, is Waseem Amar, from Qalqiya who is waiting for her father, who was all arrested in 2003 on charges of killing settler and has been sentenced to life in prison.
The family have had no information about his status or condition for over two years she told The Independent. After she spoke her mother got a phone call saying that he was on his way from Ofer.
“I can’t describe the fillings, it’s like a dream, I can only believe it when I see him,” she told The Independent in tears.
“We hope to have a better life in the future with our father - a father is the column of any family. We just want to have peace we have suffered enough. We hope and pray to God that this brings actual peace.”
According to the deal, nearly 2000 Palestinians were due to be released from Israeli prison on Monday - including 250 serving life sentences, and at least 1700 from Gaza who have been detained since 7 October 2023, among them 22 children.
The Independent understands that the 1700 from Gaza have been held as “unlawful combatants”, meaning they have not be tried or convicted of anything.
The unlawful combatant law allows Israel to hold people indefinitely without charge - a move criticised by rights groups as legalising incommunicado detention, enforced disappearances, and violating international law.
What's going on in Egypt today - and who is attending?
10:43
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Alex Croft
World leaders are flocking to the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh on Monday, to finalise a Gaza ceasefire.
News broke in the past two hours that both Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas will attend the summit. It is the first visit by an Israeli prime minister to Egypt since 2021.
The international summit in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday aims to finalise an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, an Egyptian presidential spokesperson said on Saturday.
Sir Keir Starmer touched down in Egypt late last night, French president Emmanuel Macron, and EU Council president Antonio Costa are all expected to be in attendance.
Former UK prime minister Sir Tony Blair, who may take on a role in post-war peacebuilding in Gaza, is also expected to attend the summit.
Both Netanyahu and Palestinian president Abbas to attend Egypt ceasefire summit
10:26
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Alex Croft
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will attend Monday's summit on ending the Gaza war in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, an Egyptian presidential spokesperson said.
"Both Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will take part in the peace summit to solidify the agreement to end the war in Gaza and reaffirm their commitment to it," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also said U.S. President Donald Trump and Netanyahu held a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi while they were in Israel on Monday.
Why does Trump constantly want to bail out Starmer from humiliation?
10:23
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Alex Croft
Our political editor David Maddox reports:
The intervention by Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, this morning to spare the blushes of Sir Keir Starmer is significant.
The US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckerbee and the Israeli government had humiliated the British government by pouring scorn on a statement by Bridget Phillipson claiming the UK had played a significant role in getting a Middle East peace deal.
But as the UK PM faced international embarrassment ahead of flying out to Egypt for the Gaza deal signing, the Trump administration came to his aid.
Witkoff, almost certainly under instruction from the US president, posted: “I would like to acknowledge the vital role of the United Kingdom in assisting and coordinating efforts that have led us to this historic day in Israel. In particular, I want to recognize the incredible input and tireless efforts of National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell.”
This is not the first time by any means that Trump has come to the aid of Starmer. He did so with the Chagos Islands deal, allowing Lord Mandelson to be the ambassador to the US, with trade and with public pronouncements on what a strong negotiator and good man the PM is.
It may be that Trump likes and respects Starmer as an international statesman who has made an effort to reach out to him.
But this is the most transactional president in US history. The fact is that the honour of the state visit played a big role and now the hope that King Charles will be at the White House in 2026 for the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Added to that, sources have suggested that the US administration “cannot allow Britain to fail” because “it needs one ally to succeed to justify the president’s approach to foreign policy.”
First pictures of Israeli hostage reuniting with family
10:19
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Alex Croft
Watch: Drones drop warning leaflets outside Ofer prison as Palestinians to be released
10:13
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Alex Croft
Drones have been filmed dropping leaflets near Ofer prison, where Palestinian prisoners are set to be released.
“We are watching you everywhere,” the leaflets read.
“If you express any support for or affiliation with a terrorist organization, you will expose yourself to arrest and severe penalties. You have been warned.”
Israel to deport 154 freed Palestinian detainees
10:04
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Alex Croft
Israel will deport 154 released Palestinian detainees outside Israel and the Palestinian territories, an official involved in the operation told Reuters news agency on Monday.
It has brought confusion to the Palestinian relatives and friends waiting for their release, some of whom have only just found out that the detainee is set to be deported.
Buses carrying freed Palestinian detainees as part of the ceasefire and hostage release deal began moving towards the Palestinian enclave from Israeli prisons, footage on Israeli television showed.
Israel confirms all 20 living hostages have been released by Hamas
09:58
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Alex Croft
All of the 20 hostages who were still alive in Gaza are now in the hands of Israeli authorities.
Seven hostages were released early this morning and have crossed the border into Israel, where they will be reunited with their families and taken for checks in hospital.
Hours later, the remaining 13 hostages were transferred from Hamas to the Red Cross, and then into the hands of the Israeli military, who is now taking them out of Gaza.
It brings an end to an agonising two-year wait for the families and friends of the hostages.
In Israel, the bodies of 28 dead hostages still remain. They are due to be freed during this phase of the ceasefire, but it is unclear exactly when this will take place.
You can read the names and details of all the hostages who have been freed here.
Maga-style hats handed out in Knesset before Trump speech
09:51
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Alex Croft
Maga-style baseball caps have been handed out in the Israeli Knesset as Donald Trump prepares to receive a hero’s welcome from Israeli parliamentarians.
“Trump The Peace President,” the red caps read.
The US president is set to address Israeli MPs shortly.
Special MAGA-style hats being handed around and worn by audience members in the Knesset pic.twitter.com/I9L6nZHhae
— Dasha Burns (@DashaBurns) October 13, 2025
Israel releases footage of convoy carrying freed hostages
09:40
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Alex Croft
Israeli military confirms second group of hostages released
09:38
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Alex Croft
The Israeli military has confirmed that a second group of 13 Israeli hostages has been handed over to the Red Cross.
They are on their way to a site in the Gaza Strip where the military will take over to transfer them into Israel.
According to information provided by the Red Cross, 13 hostages have been transferred into their custody and are on their way to IDF and ISA forces in Gaza.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 13, 2025
In pictures: Palestinians wait for relatives and friends to be released from Israeli prisons
09:34
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Alex Croft
'A new beginning': Trump signs book in the Knesset
09:20
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Alex Croft
Donald Trump has hailed a “new beginning” as he signed a visitors book in the Israeli Knesset, shortly before addressing parliamentarians.
“This is my great honor,” he wrote.
“A great and beautiful day. A new beginning.”
We’ll be bringing you all the lines from his speech to the Israeli Knesset, due to begin any moment now.
'We are watching you everywhere': Israel warns families of Palestinian detainees set to be freed not to celebrate
09:10
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Alex Croft
Reporting by Bel Trew in Tel Aviv and Rateb Qaissy outside Ofer Prison, occupied West Bank.
Outside an Israeli prison in the occupied West Bank, and at a gathering point central Ramallah, anxious Palestinian families anticipated the release of their relatives.
According to the deal, nearly 2000 Palestinians detainees were due to be released on Monday - including 250 serving life sentences, and 1700 Palestinians from Gaza who have been detained since 7 October 2023, among them 22 children. Israel is also due to hand over the remains of 350 Palestinians they have been holding since 2023.
By Ofer prison Israeli drones dropped leaflets warning family members and supporters against expressing any “support of affiliation to a terrorist organisation” adding ominously “we are watching you everywhere”.
In central Ramallah at a gathering point, relatives, supporters and members of Palestinians security forces waited for news of the buses.