To the extent that Donald Trump's choice of words matters, the statement he released late on Sunday night regarding the expected release of dual Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander from the hands of Hamas included several important words, and was deliberately missing one specific name.
The statement, really just a paragraph published on the U.S. president's social media accounts, described Alexander's release as a "step taken in good faith towards the United States." Trump didn't specify who exactly was showing this good faith, but there was no need to – there's only one way to read the sentence. Alexander, an American and Israeli citizen who immigrated to Israel, joined the military and was kidnapped while guarding the Gaza border on October 7, is held by Hamas, and the Palestinian terror organization has decided to release him. They're the ones getting the credit for his release.
Even more significant are the words that Trump used in his following sentence, words that he had not previously mentioned in any of his statements, speeches or media comments about the war in Gaza. For the first time since taking office in January, Trump explicitly called to end the war in Gaza, or in his own words, "put an end to this very brutal war." He tied this to the return of ALL the hostages currently held in Gaza (the all-caps spelling is, of course, his own).
Until last night, Trump spoke vaguely about the need to release the hostages and took pride in the return of some of them immediately after his return to the White House, as part of the January 2025 cease-fire deal. But never before had he linked a deal to end the war with the release of all the hostages – until now.
The position he expressed – and repeated later in the statement with a call to "end this brutal conflict" – aligns with the demand of most hostages' families and the majority of the Israeli public: to prioritize the hostages' release over continuing Israel's 'Forever War' in Gaza. But this position directly contradicts the stated intentions of Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which is pushing for a new, massive ground offensivedespite the obvious and urgent risk it poses to the remaining hostages.
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By calling to end the "brutal war" and expressing his hope for "that day of celebration," Trump has set new terms for negotiations between Israel and Hamas. While Netanyahu has only agreed to a partial cease-fire and hostage deal – one that would leave many hostages behind and allow Israel to keep fighting for months – Trump has now made clear he wants the war's end to be part of a broader deal to free them all.
Needless to say, Trump's words must be taken with a grain of salt – as we've all seen in recent months, his positions on tariffs, Ukraine, and other global issues shift constantly. But if he sticks to his call to end the war, it will become much harder for Netanyahu to press ahead with war plans that are already deeply unpopular in Israel and lack public legitimacy. Most Israelis want the hostages brought home more than they want another drawn-out operation against Hamas that will cost many young soldiers' lives.
In order to achieve this goal, however, Trump and his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will have to play hardball with Netanyahu and realize that he and his close confidante, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, will do everything they can to sabotage the negotiations with Hamas. Netanyahu knows that a deal to end the war in exchange for all the hostages would spell the collapse of his government, which depends on far-right parties that vehemently oppose such an agreement.
Whether they are willing to do that remains an open question. But perhaps there's a hint in Trump's statement on Edan Alexander's release. The President mentioned the positive involvement of the two mediators in this deal, Qatar and Egypt, but didn't even once mention another country, the one Alexander happens to be a citizen of: Israel.
This means that the deal to release the young soldier was clearly orchestrated without Israeli involvement and presented to Netanyahu as a fait accompli. Could Trump and Witkoff do the same with a broader cease-fire and hostage deal? We'll likely find out in the coming hours or days. The fate of the hostages – and the future of both Israel and Gaza – may hinge on that answer.