War Day 549: Trump Talks Iran, New Egyptian Hosatge Deal

Summary: April 7, 2025

• Egypt has put forward a new ceasefire proposal aimed at addressing the ongoing hostage situation, but Israel has expressed significant concerns about certain aspects of the deal, making it problematic for the country. Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have gained control of 40% of Gaza, shifting the balance of power in the region. In response to ongoing tensions, Israel has also paused sending aid to Hamas, further escalating the situation.
• In a separate development, a notorious journalist linked to terrorism has been eliminated, marking a significant action against individuals with extremist ties. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has raised alarm over Turkey’s actions in Syria, which he believes may have wider implications for the region’s stability.
• In the airspace, a Houthi drone has been successfully downed, preventing potential threats. Additionally, former U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that the U.S. has entered direct negotiations with Iran. However, Iran has denied these claims, adding another layer of complexity to U.S.-Iran relations.

59 held captive in Gaza.
35 hostages confirmed murdered held in Gaza.
147 living hostages rescued.
49 hostage bodies rescued.
1,828 Israelis killed.
413 fallen soldiers and police in the battle in Gaza.
87 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
18 fallen soldiers and police in Judea & Samaria.
30,708 estimated projectiles fired at Israel.
20,000 Israelis estimated displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Top Headlines:

– Egypt raises new proposal for hostage-ceasefire deal
– Israel finds the proposal too problematic
– Other negotiations are ongoing
– 40% of Gaza now under IDF control
– Notorious terror-journalist eliminated
– False rumors: Israel is not transferring aid to Gaza
– Further arrests in Judea and Samaria, crackdowns on stone throwing
– Hezbollah commander eliminated in Lebanon
– Netanyahu raises concerns over Turkey in Syria
– Houthi drone downed
– Trump says U.S. has begun direct negotiations with Iran
– Iran denies direct negotiations
– Netanyahu: Israel is open to a diplomatic solution that ensures no nukes
– Israeli security forces chase down suspect on main highway
– Netanyahu negotiates tariffs with Trump, makes huge offer

Prime Minister Netanyahu visited U.S. President Trump in the White House today. After a meeting, the two leaders met the press in the Oval Office. They gave statements, and answered questions. I’ll address much of the content throughout this report, where relevant.

Hostages:

Egypt announced that they presented a new proposal, which would free 8 hostages, in exchange for a ceasefire of 40-70 days. Israeli sources say that the deal is not plausible, since it includes demands for a permanent ceasefire and full IDF withdrawal from Gaza (likely with UN Security Council guarantees).

During a joint press briefing in the Oval Office, Prime Minister Netanyahu and U.S President Trump said that there are ongoing negotiations for a deal to bring the hostages home, and that a huge amount of work is being put into it.

Trump also noted his surprise at the desperation of families of murdered hostages to get the bodies back, and commented, “I guess it’s religion.”

Gaza:

Hamas did not successfully launch any rockets into Israel today. Thank G-d, there were no fallen soldiers in Gaza, despite a large deployment. May G-d continue to protect our soldiers!

It is estimated that the IDF now fully controls 40% of Gaza (Maariv). Approximately 50% of Gaza has been designated as the security buffer zone, with evacuation warnings issued for the entire area. The IDF is moving much quicker than expected, in quiet stealth.

The IDF has not detailed airstrike targets, but judging from the loud explosions and many jets above, there is a very significant number of airstrikes ongoing.

The IDF did announce one targeted elimination: Overnight, an IDF airstrike eliminated Hamas terrorist Hassan Abd al-Fatah Muhmad Atslih, in Khan Younis. Atslih infiltrated Israel and took part in the October 7th massacre, while also freelancing for the Associated Press, and documenting and uploading the horrific events to social media, live.

The IDF and Prime Minister’s Office refuted reports this morning, and clarified that the Israel is not transferring aid to Gaza, and will not transfer any aid so long as it may go to the hands of Hamas. While there is still plenty food in Gaza, some specific products are running low in supply in some areas. One of the products running low is flour, though Hamas is known to have a large storehouse of their own.

The plan to assist Gazans who wish to relocate is still ongoing, and nearly 20 airplanes full of Gazans have departed from the Ramon Airport (near Eilat) so far. A few countries are in negotiations to take in more Gazans. In the Oval Office press conference, Trump restated support for relocating Gazans who wish to leave, and the possibility of handing control of the Strip to a peace force, such as the U.S.

Protests against Hamas in Gaza are still ongoing. The protests are not necessarily anti-war, and are definitely not pro-peace with Israel. They are simply angry with Hamas, due to the current harsh conditions in Gaza.

Judea & Samaria:

Fifteen wanted terrorists were arrested in overnight counterterrorism operations throughout Judea and Samaria. In addition, three weapons and thousands of shekels in terrorism funds were confiscated. The operations took place in Gilzon, Al-Amari, Qalandiya, the Hebron area, and the Beit Ummar area.

During the day, several terrorists threw stones at an Israeli vehicle driving through Huwara. The vehicle was damaged, but no casualties occurred. IF forces rushed to the scene, searched for the terrorists, and arrested three suspects.

Lebanon:

An IDF airstrike eliminated Hezbollah terrorist Mohammed Adnan Mansour, who was the artillery commander of the Taybeh region. During the war, Mansour led and carried out numerous firings targeting Israel’s Upper Galilee region.

Syria:

Netanyahu and Trump discussed Israel’s concerns over Turkey moving into Syria. Turkey has grown increasingly hostile to Israel over the last decade. Their intentions to set up military bases in southern Syria pose a severe security risk to Israel, which is worsened by the fact that Turkey is a NATO member. Trump expressed that he has a good relationship with Turkey’s President Erdogan, and should be able to solve any problems.

According to some reports, Netanyahu is lobbying the U.S. against selling the F-35 to Turkey.

Yemen:

Israel’s Air Force intercepted a UAV (attack drone) launched from Yemen. The drone was intercepted before entering Israeli territory, and no sirens were activated.

The Iranian-backed Houthis took responsibility for the launch, and claim to have targeted a “military target” in the Tel Aviv area.

The U.S. is still attacking the Houthis. In the words of the U.S. Secretary of Defense today, “It’s been a bad three weeks for the Houthis, and it’s about to get worse.”

Iran:

As suspected, Iran seems to be the main focus of Netanyahu’s White House visit.

During the press conference, Netanyahu raised the Iranian issue, and said “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. If it can be done diplomatically as it was in Libya, that would be a good thing. But if it can’t, we have to ensure it has no nuclear weapons.” (In 2003, Libya completely gave up all nuclear-related facilities, and granted full access to IAEA officials to oversee the process.)

Trump then expressed that the U.S. has already begun direct talks with Iran, saying “We’re having direct talks with Iran, and they’ve started. It’ll go on Saturday. We have a very big meeting, and we’ll see what can happen. And I think everybody agrees that doing a deal would be preferable, to doing the obvious. The obvious is not something that I want to be involved with, or frankly that Israel wants to be involved with if they can avoid it…. But it’s getting to be very dangerous territory, and hopefully those talks will be successful.”

In response to questioning, Trump said the deal would be “different and maybe a lot stronger” than the 2015 JCPOA deal which he had dismantled. He also stressed that if no deal occurs, then Iran will be “in great danger.”

This is of course a huge concern to Netanyahu, who is very afraid of a bad deal being made, in which Iran can still covertly create nuclear weapons, and Israel can no longer act. Another concern is that Iran will just drag out negotiations to gain immunity while continuing to work in the background.

It is still unclear if there is any hope for these negotiations. Trump has repeatedly stated that he will only hold direct negotiations, while Iran continues to insist on indirect negotiations.

Following Trump’s announcement, a senior Iranian official told Reuters: “The talks will not be direct … It will be with Oman’s mediation.”

The Iranian Regime’s Nournews outlet, wrote that Trump’s announcing direct negotiations is part of a “psychological operation aimed at influencing domestic and international public opinion.”

Some analysts agree with Iran, and suggest that Trump is just trying to show that he worked hard to find a diplomatic solution, before he directs an attack against them. Others suggest that Trump is genuine, and does not want war—as is evident by VP Vance’s strong isolationist stance.

Other:

In an unusual event, Israeli police and IDF chased down a vehicle on Highway 6, and stopped it near Kfar Qasim, with guns drawn. Nine suspects were arrested, and taken for interrogation. No information has been given yet. The unverified rumor is that at least one of the passengers was on the way to carry out a terror attack.

In response to questions about reversing the 17% tariff on Israel, Trump said: “Not sure — we’ll see. We give Israel billions of dollars, 4 billion dollars a year, among the highest… We take care of our friends, not our enemies.” Netanyahu had already announced willingness to remove all tariffs, taxes, and trade barriers on U.S. imports. Trump later expressed that other countries should have offered the same as Netanyahu. The outcome here is unclear, but negotiations seem to be ongoing in other offices.

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