Civilians in Gaza and families of hostages in Israel said they were holding onto “a glimmer of hope” for a peace plan, as Israel continued to pound the Strip despite Donald Trump urging for an immediate ceasefire.
Overnight, Mr Trump called on Israel to immediately stop bombing Gaza, saying Hamas was ready for “lasting peace” after the militant group accepted some elements of his 20-point peace plan – including the release of all remaining hostages held in Gaza.
On Saturday night, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he hoped to announced the release of hostages “in coming days” as the country’s army said it had been instructed to prepare for the first phase of the US proposal.
But in Gaza, United Nations officials and civilians told The Independent that while there had been a lessening of fire in the north, and some displaced families were attempting to return home, Israel’s shelling and bombing had continued – with wounded families and children pouring into hospitals.
“People are obviously desperate for a ceasefire, but we haven’t seen a lot of change on the ground. There has been heavy shelling, missile and small arms fire all day,” said James Elder, spokesperson for the UN’s child agency UNICEF, speaking to The Independent from southern Gaza.
He said that on Saturday, he had seen a girl aged 10 with “horrific” shrapnel wounds from air strikes as she attempted to collect water, and another boy who had been shot in the knee while trying to access aid from one of the militarised distribution points.
“The people need to see concrete evidence on the ground – which means concrete not falling from the sky,” he added.
In central Gaza, Marwan Sabita, 45, a father of five, said that news Hamas and Israel had apparently agreed to parts of a deal represented “a glimmer of hope”. He said: “I ask God that it will be a ray of hope – and that the bloodshed will actually end now.”
In Israel, families of the remaining 48 hostages – both alive and dead – said it was a time for “action not words” urging Israel to “stand together and demand loudly: do everything possible to bring our brothers and sisters home”.
Ruby Chen, whose son Itay an Israeli soldier was killed on 7 October and his body held by militants in Gaza, spoke of “cautious optimism”.
“We are feeling cautious optimism and have a lot of questions, but the fact Hamas is willing to front-load and release all the hostages is very positive. Mr Trump is leading the way and taking ownership of the process – which is a very positive development,” he added.
Last week, Mr Trump unveiled a 20-point plan to end the war on Gaza: a conflict that has dragged on for nearly two years since the bloody Hamas attacks on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, during which over 250 people were taken hostage.
Since then, Israeli bombardment and siege have killed more than 67,000 Palestinians in Gaza, razed swathes of the enclave to the ground, displaced most of its two million residents, and triggered famine, according to the UN-backed hunger monitor. Last month, a UN special inquiry concluded that Israel has committed genocide, something Israel vehemently denies.
The international community welcomed news that Mr Trump’s plan for an end to the war has apparently been endorsed by both Mr Netanyahu and Hamas.
In the version of the plan shared by the White House, Hamas would hand over all 48 remaining hostages within 72 hours, disarm, relinquish control of Gaza under an amnesty agreement. The plan stipulates that Israel will not be permitted to occupy or annex Gaza or forcibly displace its inhabitants. The Strip would be governed by an interim technocratic authority presided over by a “Board of Peace” headed by Mr Trump and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Both Hamas and Netanyahu appeared to endorse parts of the plan although Netanyahu added additional stipulations including that Israel retain “security responsibility” for Gaza at press conference, and senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk told Al Jazeera the proposal "cannot be implemented without negotiations".
Mr Trump, who has campaigned as a “peacemaker president”, warned on social media that “all hell” would break loose if this agreement was not reached by the end of Sunday.
He wrote on Truth Social: “Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the hostages out safely and quickly!”
Mr Trump appears keen to deliver on his pledges to end the war and return the hostages ahead of the second anniversary of the attack on Tuesday. His proposal has received widespread international support.
On Saturday, Sir Keir Starmer labelled Hamas's partial acceptance of Mr Trump’s peace plan as a “significant step forward” and called for an “agreement without delay”.
In a statement, he said that this was “an opportunity to end the fighting, for the hostages to return home, and for humanitarian aid to reach those who so desperately need it. We call on all sides to implement the agreement without delay.”
On Saturday, in his brief statement, Mr Netanyahu said he has sent a delegation to Egypt "to finalise technical details" of the US plan to end the war, adding that "our goal is to contain these negotiations to a timeframe of a few days".
In Gaza, families said they were desperate for good news but also worried about the apparent differences in interpretation of the deal between Israel and Hamas.
“The general atmosphere is tense for me, and I have no optimism because Hamas’s response doesn't match what Netanyahu is demanding. I hope the opposite of what I think will happen,” said Ali Hassan, 42, displaced from the north to Deir al-Balah.
Unicef’s James Elder said there was no time to lose as families were at breaking point in the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. He said an “Unprecedented level of support “ for the international community is needed to push this through.
“I have failed to understand how the reports of 19,500 girls and boys killed since the horrors October 7 - does not capture the world leadership every single day. It's a thousand babies,” he said.
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