Trump welcomes freed Israeli hostages to White House

US President Donald Trump met Thursday with Israeli hostages who were freed after being held by Hamas and their families at the White House.

The group included 26 former captives, many of whom were freed last month as part of a ceasefire deal between Israel and the Palestinian group, according to Israeli media.

Speaking at the event, Trump called the released hostages "heroes."

"We love you all, and our country loves you all. You're amazing people," he told the group.

The meeting came after a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas took effect on Oct. 10, outlining the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Hamas has released 20 Israeli captives alive and handed over the remains of 27 out of 28 captives since the ceasefire began.

Since Oct. 11, however, Israeli forces have killed 280 Palestinians and wounded 672, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed nearly 70,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children.