Trump Announces "Real Chance" for Gaza Peace Deal as Israel Commemorates October 7 Anniversary

US President Donald Trump expressed optimism about ending the Gaza conflict as Israel commemorated the second anniversary of the October 7 attacks.

Trump's peace initiative proposes a ceasefire, release of all hostages, and Hamas's disarmament.

Washington:

As Israel remembered victims of the October 7 attacks on their second anniversary, US President Donald Trump conveyed confidence that there was a "real chance" to end the Gaza war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in his anniversary message, pledged to achieve all war objectives, including crushing Hamas, the Palestinian militant group behind the attacks.

"We are in fateful, decisive days. We will continue to act to achieve all the war's objectives: the return of all abductees, the elimination of Hamas's rule, and ensuring that Gaza will never again pose a threat to Israel," Netanyahu stated.

Indirect negotiations between Israeli and Hamas representatives are underway in Egypt's Sharm El-Sheikh resort, based on Trump's 20-point peace plan.

"There's a real chance that we could do something," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, mentioning that US negotiators were participating in the talks.

"I think there's a possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East."

Trump committed that the United States would "do everything possible to make sure everyone adheres to the deal" if an agreement is reached.

Hamas' chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya stated that his organization "wants guarantees from (US) President Trump and the sponsor countries that the war will end once and for all".

Two years ago, at the conclusion of the Jewish festival of Sukkot, Hamas-led militants launched the deadliest attack in Israel's history, triggering a massive retaliatory offensive in Gaza.

The attack resulted in 1,219 deaths, primarily civilians, according to AFP tallies based on official Israeli figures.

Militants also captured 251 hostages, with 47 still in captivity, including 25 whom the Israeli military believes are deceased.

Senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum called the October 7 attack a "historic response" to Israel's attempt to "eradicate the Palestinian cause".

He added that Hamas was working to "surmount all obstacles" to finalizing a deal in Egypt.

International pressure to end the conflict has intensified, with Gaza largely destroyed, a UN-declared famine developing, and families of Israeli hostages anxiously awaiting their loved ones' return.

A UN investigation last month accused Israel of genocide in Gaza, while rights groups have charged Hamas with committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the October 7 attack. Both sides reject these allegations.

Trump's peace plan calls for a ceasefire, hostage release, Hamas disarmament, and gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Both Israel and Hamas responded positively to the plan, leading to the indirect talks that commenced in Egypt on Monday.

According to a Palestinian source close to Hamas negotiators, Tuesday's session involved Hamas discussing "the initial maps presented by the Israeli side regarding the withdrawal of troops as well as the mechanism and timetable for the hostage-prisoner exchange".

"Hamas insists on linking the timeline for the release of captives to the timeline of Israeli withdrawals".

Trump's special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff will join the talks on Wednesday, according to Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.

"The primary guarantee of success at this stage is US President Trump himself... even if it comes to a point to require him imposing a vision," he stated.

Qatar announced that its prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, would also participate in the negotiations, while Turkish state media reported that the country's intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin would lead a delegation to Egypt.

In Israel, families and friends of those killed at the Nova music festival gathered to light candles and observe a minute's silence at the attack site, where militants killed over 370 people and took dozens hostage.

Orit Baron, whose daughter Yuval died there with her fiancé Moshe Shuva, told AFP that October 7 was a "black" day for her family.

"Now it's two years. And I'm here to be with her, because this is the last time that she was alive," the 57-year-old mother said at the attack site, adding she felt "that right now she's with me here".

Later Tuesday, thousands of Israelis attended a memorial in Tel Aviv, with speakers focusing on the hostages still held in Gaza.

Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 67,160 people, according to the health ministry in Hamas-controlled territory, figures the United Nations considers credible.

The data doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates over half of the casualties are women and children.

"My dream is for the war to end now, not tomorrow," said Abeer Abu Said, a 21-year-old in Gaza who lost seven family members in the war.

"I don't trust anyone -- from the Israeli negotiators or even Hamas -- they all lie to us. Negotiations for the sake of negotiations, while we die every minute."

Egypt's Abdelatty said negotiations aimed to implement a "first phase" of the agreement, "to create conditions for the release of the hostages, the access for aid and the release of Palestinian prisoners".

"This, therefore, requires the redeployment of Israeli forces so that we can work to implement this phase," he added.

Israeli strikes continued on Tuesday, killing at least six people, according to Gaza's civil defence agency -- a rescue force operating under Hamas's authority.