World reacts to first stage of Gaza peace deal

BBC:

World leaders have welcomed the news that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a Gaza peace plan.

The deal paves the way for the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and the entry of aid into Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the agreement “a great day for Israel”.

“I thank from the bottom of my heart President Trump and his team for their dedication to this sacred mission of freeing our hostages,” he said.

“With God’s help, together we will continue to achieve all our goals and expand peace with our neighbours.”

Hamas said the negotiations were “responsible and serious” and called on Trump, the guarantor states of the agreement, and all Arab, Islamic, and international parties to “compel the occupation government to fully implement its obligations under the agreement and to prevent it from evading or delaying the implementation of what has been agreed upon”.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who leads Hamas’s rival Fatah movement, also welcomed Trump’s announcement.

He “expressed hope that these efforts would be a prelude to reaching a permanent political solution… leading to an end to the Israeli occupation of the State of Palestine and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state”.