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Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefing President Donald Trump that Israel and Hamas have signed off on a peace deal, Oct. 8, 2025. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons\/The White House<\/p>\n Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefing President Donald Trump that Israel and Hamas have signed off on a peace deal, Oct. 8, 2025. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons\/The White House<\/p>\n
Local Philadelphia Jewish leaders are sharing a sense of optimism and caution about the peace plan between Israel and Hamas that President Donald Trump announced on Oct. 8, along with joy over the release of the living hostages.<\/p>\n
Both parties agreed to the \u201cfirst phase\u201d of an agreement to end the two-year war in Gaza and bring home the dozens of remaining hostages held since Oct. 7, 2023. Hamas released all 20 of the remaining living hostages on Monday and Israel will partially withdraw from Gaza per the deal, according to Trump.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the news that we were all praying for. The plan that the hostages would be released, it\u2019s very welcomed news. We\u2019re happy, very happy. We have to see how everything will play out,\u201d said Marcia Bronstein, the Philadelphia\/Southern New Jersey regional director for the American Jewish Committee.<\/p>\n
Michael Balaban, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, said that there\u2019s a lot of hope surrounding the news of the cease-fire deal.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur hope is that this is going to mark a turning point for peace and the opportunity for an incredible future in the Middle East. But again, we\u2019re going to take it step by step and, with each day, hoping that more and more progress gets made,\u201d Balaban said.<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro offered his reaction to the news on X.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday is a day of great relief as after 738 days, the last 20 living Israeli hostages held by Hamas have finally come home to their families. I pray that all those families whose loved ones are deceased will soon receive them as well. The end of this terrible war now offers hope and opportunity for Israelis, Palestinians, and the entire region. Much work remains to ensure that Hamas is disarmed and removed from power so that Gaza can be rebuilt and a path toward a broader and deeper peace can be forged in the region. [Monday\u2019s] summit in Egypt is an important opportunity to advance this cause. I appreciate the President and his team for their work to reach this moment, and hope they will remain just as focused on the important work ahead,\u201d Shapiro said.<\/p>\n
And the news of the cease-fire deal has leaders thinking about the future of the Philadelphia Jewish community.<\/p>\n
Balaban said the time has come to refocus on unity and work on building the Jewish community on excitement and vibrancy rather than crisis.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been so much disunity. While collectively, we all want to see the hostages return, we all want to see peace. The fractures and friction among society that has taken place globally, between the left and the right, the distance from the center that\u2019s taken place, we have to find a way to, even during times of disagreement, learn how to come together and listen to each other and try to support each other rather than devalue each other,\u201d Balaban said.<\/p>\n
National leaders of Jewish organizations also applauded Israel and Hamas signing the first phase of the Gaza cease-fire deal.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor two years, our hearts have ached alongside the families of the captives,\u201d a statement by the Jewish Federations of North America read. \u201cWe have prayed, rallied, and spoken their names, refusing to let the world forget them. Today, our prayers have been answered \u2014 not completely, for the pain of loss remains \u2014 but with the long-awaited promise of healing, renewal, and hope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur hearts remain with the hostages and their families, who have been living in a nightmare and fighting to be reunited with their loved ones,\u201d said a statement by Hadassah, The Women\u2019s Zionist Organization of America. \u201cWe hold our breath until all of them, living and deceased, are returned home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile not a full peace agreement, it is the first and necessary step toward stopping the death and suffering as the hostages come home, the IDF pulls back, long-serving reservists return to their families, and innocent Gazan civilians caught in the crossfire can finally experience a modicum of safety and receive a consistent flow of vitally needed humanitarian aid,\u201d a statement by the Reform Jewish Movement read. \u201cThe pain and grief of this war will not soon heal, but seeing our hostages finally embraced by their families will fill our aching hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are grateful to President Trump and his team for their unrelenting pursuit of peace and skillful achievement of this deal; their moral clarity in supporting the good of Israel and their commitment to the eradication of the evil of Hamas; and their determination to achieve freedom for all the hostages and a lasting peace for the region,\u201d the Orthodox Union said in a statement. \u201cWe are prayerful that the deal produces its desired result; that the living hostages are restored to physical and emotional health in the embrace of their families and that the families of all the deceased somehow find healing; that the heroic soldiers of Tzahal and their families can begin the return to normalcy; that the unrepentant terrorists being released by Israel be prevented from returning to their destructive ways; and that the Palestinians seize the opportunity to finally reject violence and hate and truly embrace peace with Israel, allowing them to ensure a glorious future for their children and ours.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other organizations, including AIPAC, remembered the 1,200 people killed in Israel on Oct. 7.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe celebrate this moment even as we mourn the innocent lives that have been lost because of Hamas\u2019 savagery,\u201d AIPAC\u2019s statement read.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt should never have taken this long \u2014 but today, hope is finally becoming reality,\u201d Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, the president of the World Jewish Congress, wrote in a statement. \u201cThis agreement marks a turning point. Hamas must now be disarmed and excluded from any future role in Gaza. Only then can there be lasting peace and security for Israel and for the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis agreement is a vital first step toward lasting peace, but immense work remains to turn this fragile beginning into a durable resolution of this conflict,\u201d the nonprofit organization J Street wrote in a statement.<\/p>\n
More reaction poured out from local and national Jewish leaders after the release of the 20 remaining hostages and their safe return to Israel.<\/p>\n
Leaders expressed joy at the release of the hostages held in captivity for over two years, while remembering the ones who didn\u2019t make it to see this day arrive.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, we rejoice that the remaining 20 living hostages have finally been freed and reunited with their families. We recognize they have a challenging physical and mental rehabilitation process ahead, and we embrace them as they work to reclaim their lives. Our joy is tempered as we share in the deep sorrow of the bereaved families who await their loved ones killed in captivity. May our collective strength and love hold them,\u201d Hadassah said in a statement. \u201cToday, we exhale, though we cannot do so fully until all 48 hostages are back in Israel. Our hearts are with all who have suffered terrible loss, all the survivors, whose spirit and resilience have been a miracle, and the hostage families who have been unflinching in their fight to bring them all home.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia said it celebrates \u201cthis long-awaited moment as the 20 surviving hostages come home to their loved ones. For 738 days, through 18 major Jewish holidays and 105 Shabbat dinners, 48 out of 250 people kidnapped from Israel have been held in captivity by Hamas terrorists, in horrific conditions. Each of those 1 million minutes was filled with anguish and uncertainty \u2014 wondering if the hostages would live or die, knowing that the Jewish people were incomplete without them. We also mourn the indelible loss of 28 people who faced down Hamas with heroism and bravery but did not survive captivity, whose bodies are expected to return home in the coming hours and days. We pray for their families and their loved ones.\u201d<\/p>\n