Hamas Formally Responds to US Plan, Agrees to Hostage Release and Ceding Gaza Control

Hamas has issued its formal, detailed response to the U.S.-led peace proposal, officially agreeing to two of its most crucial demands: the release of all Israeli hostages and the transfer of Gaza’s administration to an independent Palestinian technocratic authority. The detailed statement, released late Friday evening, represents the most significant positive development in the quest to end the war, though it carefully defers the contentious issue of disarmament to a later stage.
The four-paragraph response, addressed to international mediators, begins by appreciating the efforts of “U.S. President Donald Trump, calling for stopping the war on the Gaza Strip, exchanging prisoners, [and] immediate entry of aid.”
In the most critical section, the group gives its clearest commitment yet on the hostage issue. “The movement announces its approval to release all occupation prisoners, alive and dead, according to the exchange formula mentioned in President Trump’s proposal,” the statement reads. It adds that Hamas is ready to “immediately enter negotiations through mediators to discuss the details” of the exchange process, contingent on creating the necessary “field conditions”—a reference to the ceasefire needed to carry out the release safely.
Equally significant is the concession on governance. “The movement also renews its approval to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian independent technocratic authority based on Palestinian national consensus and relying on Arab and Islamic support,” Hamas declared. This confirms a willingness to step back from direct rule, a core demand of the U.S., Israel, and regional Arab partners.
However, on the most difficult points of the American plan—namely the demand for Hamas to disarm and the long-term political future of the territory—the group was more circumspect.
The statement concludes by noting that “other issues mentioned in President Trump’s proposal related to the future of the Gaza Strip and the authentic rights of the Palestinian people… will be discussed through a comprehensive Palestinian national framework in which Hamas will participate and contribute responsibly.”
This language effectively tables the disarmament issue, framing it as a topic for an internal, all-faction Palestinian dialogue rather than a precondition for the current deal. While this remains a massive obstacle from the Israeli and American perspectives, the explicit and unconditional agreement on the release of all hostages and the transfer of administrative power is being seen by diplomats as a monumental step forward, potentially breaking the deadlock and pulling the region back from the brink of a wider war.