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00:00The ceasefire has gone into effect in Gaza, and today we're seeing hostages being released.
00:09Three Israeli women held against their will in the dark tunnels for 470 days.
00:15Four more women will be released in seven days.
00:17Three additional hostages every seven days thereafter, including at least two American
00:21citizens in this first phase.
00:25We pray for them and their families, for there's going to be a long recovery ahead.
00:30By the 16th day of the deal, talks will begin in the second phase.
00:34This phase includes the release of Israeli soldiers and a permanent end of the war without
00:40Hamas in power or able to threaten Israel.
00:44Hundreds of trucks are entering Gaza as I speak.
00:47They're carrying assistance for civilians who've suffered enormously from the war that
00:51Hamas started on October 7th, 2023, nearly 15 months ago.
00:57Today alone, we anticipate several hundred trucks will enter the Gaza Strip as I'm speaking.
01:03And after so much pain, destruction, loss of life, today the guns in Gaza have gone
01:08silent.
01:09This was the deal that I outlined for the world back in May 31st.
01:13Many of you covered it at the time.
01:16It was endorsed overwhelmingly by folks around the world, including the UN Security Council,
01:22unanimously endorsed the deal and developed in coordination with Egypt, Qatar, and Israel.
01:30I've worked in foreign policy for decades, and this is one of the toughest negotiations
01:35I've been part of.
01:36Many of you who follow these negotiations will attest that the road to this deal has
01:40been not easy at all and a long road.
01:44But we've reached this point today because of the pressure Israel built on Hamas, backed
01:48by the United States.
01:50Some said my policy of affirmed support for Israel is relentlessly pursuing diplomacy,
01:55risk drawing America into a wider war in the region.
01:59I listened to those voices, many of whom I respected a great deal, but I concluded abandoning
02:04the course I was on would not have led us to the ceasefire we're seeing today, but instead
02:10it would have risked a wider war in the region that so many feared.
02:15Now the region has been fundamentally transformed.
02:18Hamas's longtime leader, Sinmar, is dead.
02:21Hamas sponsors in the Middle East have been badly weakened by Israel, backed by the United
02:26States.
02:27Hezbollah, one of Hamas's biggest backers, was significantly weakened on the battlefield
02:33and its leadership was destroyed.
02:35Even as we worked for diplomatic solutions in Lebanon, we provided ongoing assistance
02:40and support to Israel's military campaign against Hezbollah, including its efforts to
02:44take out the terror infrastructure along the border between Israel and Lebanon.
02:50Israel's campaign was extremely successful, so much so that by the end of November, the
02:56United States had brokered a ceasefire in Lebanon.
03:00Hezbollah did what it said it would never do.
03:02It cut its deal and abandoned Hamas.
03:07And today, Lebanon, in Lebanon, there's finally a new president and prime minister, both of
03:12whom support a sovereign Lebanon without Hezbollah running the show or playing any part in it.
03:19The Assad regime next door in Syria is gone, removing Iran's ready access to Lebanon.
03:27Iran is in the weakest position in decades after the U.S. military helped defend Israel
03:32from Iranian missiles and supported Israel's military response inside Iran.
03:37Just look across the region.
03:38In Lebanon, there's an opportunity for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah.
03:43In Syria, a future free from the Assad, the tyranny of Assad.
03:49For the Palestinian people, a credible path to a state of their own.
03:53For the region and the future normalization and integration of Israel with all its Arab
03:58neighbors, including Saudi Arabia, which I've spoken with.
04:01You know, we've had many difficult days since Hamas began this terrible war.
04:05We've encountered roadblocks and setbacks, but we haven't given up.
04:09And a special thanks to my team, particularly Brett McGurk, who many of you know, who spent
04:14weeks and months working nonstop to reach this deal.
04:18Many of those weeks and months out of the country.
04:21Today's ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages is a result of a principled and
04:27effective policy that we presided over for months.
04:31And we get it.
04:32We got here without a wider war in the Middle East.
04:34Many predicted.
04:35And now it falls in the next administration to help implement this deal.
04:39I was pleased to have our team speak as one voice in the final days.
04:44It was both necessary and effective and unprecedented, but success can require persistence and continuing
04:51support for our friends in the region and the belief in diplomacy backed by deterrence.
04:57So as we reflect on the news from Gaza today, we also remember all the victims of this war.
05:03They were mindful, mindful that the pursuit of a lasting peace, while never easy or quick,
05:09must always be our calling.
05:11So thank you all for listening.
05:13May God bless you all.
05:14May God protect our troops.
05:15I'm looking forward to this deal being fully implemented.
05:18And I'm sorry, I'm not going to take any questions now because I'm waiting.
05:21There's a whole congregation waiting for me.
05:23And I'm sure the remainder of the day, I'll have an opportunity to speak with you.
05:26Thank you very much.
05:27Anything about the condition of the hostages that were released today and the others?
05:31Yes, I've just got a call saying the three are released into Gaza to the, uh, uh, out
05:40of the hands of, of, of the, of their captors.
05:43And they appear to be in good health, but it's early to tell they're literally being,
05:47they may be across the border of the Gaza Strip into Israel.
05:51Now I'm not certain.