Latvia supports agreement on first phase of US President's Gaza peace plan

RIGA - Latvia supports the agreement on the first stage of US President Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza, according to posts by Foreign Minister Baiba Braze (New Unity) and President Edgars Rinkevics on the social media platform X.

Braze stressed that Latvia appreciates the diplomatic efforts of the countries involved, underlining the need to immediately release the hostages, reach a ceasefire and implement the next stages of the plan.

Meanwhile, Rinkevics pointed out that the agreement should be followed by the immediate release of the Israeli hostages, a ceasefire and the provision of humanitarian aid in Gaza. He also underlined the importance of US leadership and the diplomatic efforts of Qatar, Egypt and Turkey.

The AFP news agency reports that Israel and Hamas on Thursday agreed a Gaza ceasefire deal to free the remaining living hostages, in a major step towards ending a war that has killed tens of thousands of people and unleashed a humanitarian catastrophe.

The agreement, which follows a 20-point peace plan for Gaza announced last month by US President Donald Trump, is to be signed Thursday in Egypt, and calls for Israel to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

Under the deal, there will be a a surge of aid into Gaza after more than two years of war started by Hamas's unprecedented October 2023 attack on Israel.

The Israeli army said it was preparing to pull back troops in Gaza as part of the deal.

Further down the line, Trump's plan also calls for the disarmament of Hamas and for Gaza to be ruled by a transitional authority headed by the US president himself, though this point has yet to be addressed.

A source within Hamas told AFP the group will exchange 20 living hostages all at the same time for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners as part of the deal's first phase, with the swap to happen within 72 hours of its implementation.

The timing of the implementation would be announced on Thursday, the source said, while Trump said he believed all the hostages would "all be coming back on Monday".