Hamas set to release hostages today, Trump says 'war is over' in Gaza

US President Donald Trump has asserted that the war in Gaza is over, as he travels to a peace summit in Egypt's resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh.

Trump made the comments when responding to a reporter on board Air Force One, who pointed out that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had not gone as far as to say that the war against Hamas was over.

"The war is over," Trump said. "The war is over," he repeated. "You understand that?"

Trump went on to say that he believed the ceasefire would hold. "I think people are tired," he said.

Hamas led an incursion into Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed some 1,200 people. Israel's two-year response has killed more than 66,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to health officials in the enclaves, although many estimates put the toll much higher.

The US president will head to Israel first, where he will meet with the hostage families, before then heading to Egypt later in the afternoon for the peace summit marking the agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Israel says it expects all 20 living hostages to be released on Monday in return for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. The bodies of 28 other hostages should also be handed over.

An international team will begin work to locate deceased hostages who are not returned within 72 hours, Israel's coordinator for the hostages and the missing, Gal Hirsch said.