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Israelis Celebrate Ceasefire to End Gaza War as Cabinet Convenes to Approve Hostage Deal
Einav Zangauker, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, reacts holding an Israeli flag with photos of hostages, after US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas agreed on the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire, at the “Hostages square,” in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
US President Donald Trump declared on Thursday that he had succeeded in ending the war in Gaza, as Israel’s cabinet convened to ratify a ceasefire deal and crowds gathered in celebration across the Jewish state.
“Last night, we reached a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East,” he said at the start of a cabinet meeting in Washington. “We ended the war in Gaza, and on a much bigger basis, created peace, hopefully an everlasting peace in the Middle East.”
Trump said he planned to leave for the region on Sunday and hoped to be in Israel when the hostages are released early next week. “The hostages will be coming back Monday or Tuesday,” he said. “I’ll probably be there. I hope to be there.”
Amir Ohana, speaker of Israel’s parliament, known as the Knesset, on Thursday officially invited Trump to speak at the legislative body ahead of his slated trip to the Jewish state.
Former Israeli Ambassador to Washington Michael Oren said the ceasefire outcome reflected the Trump administration’s strategic leverage in the Middle East.
“The Trump deal proves, once again, that peace is only possible through strength,” he told The Algemeiner. “The president’s willingness to project military power first against the Houthis and then against Iran, together with his steadfast support of Israel’s operations in Gaza, impressed Middle East leaders and earned him great leverage in negotiations.”
Oren added that Trump’s team — including special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, as well as the president’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner — had used that leverage effectively. “Combined with Witkoff’s negotiating skills and Kushner’s regional relations, Trump’s prestige proved decisive,” he said. “History will also give [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and his negotiating team high marks for forging a courageous agreement.”
Both Witkoff and Kushner attended the Israeli cabinet meeting on Thursday night.
While Trump spoke of peace from the White House earlier in the day, Israeli landmarks were illuminated in the colors of both nations. The walls of Jerusalem’s Old City were projected with Israeli and American flags, and Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, was lit in red, white, and blue.
In Tel Aviv, Hostages Square — the central gathering point for families of captives and their supporters — filled with people, many of whom carrying either American or Israeli flags. The square, usually subdued and heavy with grief, took on a rare mood of release. A band that included Gil Dickmann, cousin of slain hostage Carmel Gat, took to the stage as revelers danced.
People dance as a band including Gil Dickmann, cousin of slain hostage Carmel Gat, performs אני שוב מתאהב (I fall in love again) by former Kaveret frontman Gidi Gov at Hostages Square pic.twitter.com/hEv1z7QRju
— Noam Lehmann (@noamlehmann) October 9, 2025
One well-wisher commented that by next week, the square would lose its name, “or else become known as Returnee Square.”
Gil Yosef Yisraeli, who lives nearby, said he had never seen it so animated. “We waited two years to see the square like this,” he said. “Seeing people dancing, singing — an atmosphere of pure joy for the first time is just amazing.”
Avihoo Halevy traveled from the northern Israeli city of Yokne’am Illit to join the crowd. “I’m very happy that they’re coming home,” he said. “I’m very, very emotional. But I’m also praying that an attack like Oct. 7 won’t happen again, and that Hamas should be eliminated.”
Shira, who declined to give her last name, described herself as “delirious with joy,” but said the feeling was shadowed by thoughts of families whose loved ones would not be coming home alive, and pointed to Ruby Chen, an American-Israeli whose soldier son was killed on Oct. 7, 2023, and whose body was taken to Gaza.
According to Israeli officials, 75 of the 251 people abducted that day were killed during the attacks or while in captivity. Of the 48 still held in Gaza, roughly 20 are believed to be alive. They are expected to be released in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and another 1,700 Gazans held since the Hamas-led assault of Oct. 7.
Across Israel, many people credited Trump for the breakthrough. His image appeared on homemade posters in the square, and his role was widely discussed on television talk shows and social media feeds.
Asked earlier in Washington about his chances of receiving the Nobel Peace Prize — which will be announced on Friday — Trump cited what he called “eight agreements” he had brokered since returning to office, saying the Gaza ceasefire was “the biggest.”
Israel’s cabinet met to vote on the terms of the deal around 10 pm local time, several hours after it was slated to begin. According to officials, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s demand to veto the release of certain Palestinian prisoners, including convicted terrorists, prompted the delay.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced earlier on Thursday that he would vote against the agreement. Ben Gvir did not state his position publicly but threatened “bring down the government” if Hamas “continues to exist” after the hostages are freed.
However, a majority of the cabinet is expected to support the ceasefire and hostage-release deal.
Galit Kalfon, whose son, Segev, was snatched by Hamas terrorists at the Nova music festival, said she had spent the morning responding to messages from around the world after hearing the news that her son would soon return. She felt she had to answer each one, she said, to thank people for the support and endless prayers they had offered over the past two years.
“So many psalms were said for him,” she told Israel’s Channel 12. “I felt I had to answer every message.”
Kalfon added that for the first time since her son’ abduction, she allowed herself to listen to music. But she added that she was still full of anxiety. “When he’s finally here I’ll let it all out.”
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Ro Khanna distances himself after posting documentary clip featuring antisemitic influencer
California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna came under fire Thursday after he shared a documentary clip featuring comments by antisemitic influencer Ian Carroll.
The documentary, titled “Investigating Israeli Influence on US Politics” and made by the popular YouTuber Tommy G, takes aim at AIPAC and what it says is Israel’s influence over American policy. Khanna appears in the documentary as an example of a Democratic lawmaker who rejects the pro-Israel lobby.
The documentary features a wide range of voices, including Republican lawmakers and an IDF reservist who offer a pro-Israel perspective; a doctor who volunteered in Gaza; and Medea Benjamin, the founder of the anti-war group Code Pink.
It has also drawn criticism for favorably citing Carroll, a conspiracy theorist who claims that a “modern Jewish mafia” controls America, that Israel was behind 9/11 and that Israel conspired to kill conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. Speaking to podcaster Joe Rogan earlier this year, Carroll said Israel was founded by the “the Jewish mob” and that sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was “a Jewish organization of Jewish people working on behalf of Israel and other groups.”
“Ian Carroll is one of the internet’s top conspiracy analysts,” Tommy G says in the documentary. “His critics label him an antisemite spreading false information about Israel, but to others, he is a fearless journalist that speaks on what some perceive as an extremely strong Zionist pressure on our government.”
Khanna posted a clip of the documentary on Thursday to make the point that he has not accepted money from AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby. In the clip, Carroll claims that “93 out of 100 U.S. senators were taking money from a group that represents a foreign government and foreign interests in order to operate our government on behalf of someone else,” referring to AIPAC and Israel.
In the clip, Khanna later says that has not accepted any PAC or lobbyist contributions since entering Congress, adding that AIPAC’s stance was that “whatever Netanyahu does is right” and warning that those who disagree risk having the group “come after you.”
“I don’t take a dime from any PAC or lobbyist, including AIPAC,” wrote Khanna in the post on X. “I am proud to be one of the handful of Democrats standing up against Big Money.” He linked to an account of an organization called Track AIPAC that monitors the lobby’s donations.
Khanna soon drew criticism for appearing in the same production as Carroll and amplifying him. And hours later, he replied to his own post to distance himself from the conspiracy theorist.
“This was a documentary made by Tommy G who interviewed me. I did not speak to or meet Ian Carrol. I stand by my words and should be judged by them,” wrote Khanna.
Criticism resounded in the replies to Khanna’s post, with many commenters accusing the lawmaker of elevating Carroll’s antisemitic rhetoric on his platform.
“Stand by your words all you want. No one made you post a video where a Nazi talks favorably about you,” wrote one user on X. “In saner times, this would have [been] a career ending move. You are such a clown to defend it.”
Khanna, whose parents were from India and who was first elected in 2016, has long been one of Israel’s fiercest critics in Congress, including over its operations in Gaza. He led an effort last month to push President Donald Trump to recognize Palestinian statehood at the UN General Assembly.
“Who says we’re going to starve the people so much that they suffer that we’re going to force the surrender? It’s sick,” said Khanna later in the documentary interview. “And your tax dollars, my tax dollars are funding them because both Biden and Trump gave Netanyahu a blank check.”
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The post Ro Khanna distances himself after posting documentary clip featuring antisemitic influencer appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Singer James Maslow Expresses Solidarity With Israel in New Song ‘On My Mind’
James Maslow in front of the Dizengoff Fountain in Tel Aviv in the music video for “On My Mind.” Photo: YouTube screenshot
Actor and singer James Maslow recently released a single in collaboration with Israeli artists that celebrates Israel and showcases his solidarity with the Jewish state amid its war against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
The Jewish artist, who is famously known for his leading role in the Nickelodeon series “Big Time Rush” and as a member of the platinum-selling band of the same name, released on Oct. 3 a track titled “On My Mind,” featuring Shahar Saul, one of Israel’s up and coming rappers, and Israeli vocalist Maya Dadon. “On My Mind” combines “international pop with Middle Eastern influences, reflecting the diversity and vibrancy of Israel itself,” according to a media release about the single.
The music video for the song was filmed in Israel during the Gaza war and is “both a visual love letter to the country and a reminder of the resilience of its people.” The video was made in partnership with Birthright Israel Foundation.
“‘On My Mind’ is about connection, resilience, and remembering those who cannot be forgotten,” Maslow said in a released statement. “Filming in Israel, during such a difficult time, was my way of showing solidarity with a country and people I deeply respect. Working with two incredible Israeli artists made the project even more meaningful.”
During an interview Monday on “CUOMO,” Maslow said the song celebrates Israel’s “diversity, the acceptance, and all the things that I know to be true about it.”
“I have been over there shooting the video to utilize this as hopefully a bridge to bring a bit of a better light to Israel, to Judaism, and hopefully start a conversation where people may realize, ‘Oh, wait a second, I may not have all the facts or I might be being misled right now,’” he added.
“We have normalized antisemitism to the likes of which I never thought that I would see in my life,” Maslow said. “That’s not OK. And that’s why I created this song. And that’s why I’m here today and why I’m standing up.”
Maslow timed the release of “On My Mind” to have it debut mere days before the second anniversary of the deadly Hamas terrorist attack that took place in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Maslow traveled to Washington, DC, to join commemorations for the second anniversary of the Oct. 7 massacre.
“On My Mind” is streaming on all major platforms. Watch the music video below.
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Israel Declares Hamas Defeated ‘Every Place We Fought Them’ as Ceasefire Begins
An Israeli military tank prepares to move atop a truck, after US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas agreed on the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire, on the Israeli side of the border with Gaza, Oct. 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad
Hamas is no longer the terrorist group whose invasion of Israel triggered the two-year war in Gaza, the Israeli military spokesperson said on Friday at the start of a ceasefire with the Palestinian Islamist organization.
“Hamas is not the Hamas of two years ago. Hamas has been defeated every place we fought them,” Brigadier General Effie Defrin, the military spokesperson, told reporters at a briefing.
He urged Palestinian residents of Gaza to avoid entering areas under control by the Israel Defense Forces in the enclave.
“I am calling from here on the residents of Gaza to avoid entering areas under IDF control. Keep to the agreement and ensure your safety,” he said.
Thousands of displaced Palestinians began flocking towards their abandoned homes after a US-brokered ceasefire took effect on Friday and Israeli troops began pulling back from parts of Gaza.