By Saadet Gokce
ISTANBUL (AA) - Australia welcomed "progress" Saturday after the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, gave a positive response to US President Donald Trump's ceasefire plan for the Gaza Strip.
"We have consistently been part of international calls for a ceasefire, the return of hostages, and unimpeded humanitarian aid to reach those in need," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement that was posted on the US social media company, X.
"I reiterate our call on Hamas to agree to the plan, lay down its arms and release all remaining hostages without delay," he said.
Canberra, along with its partners, “will continue to support efforts to end the war and work towards a just support and sustainable two-state solution," he added.
Hamas issued its formal response to Trump's plan, in which it approved the release of all Israeli captives, the delivery of the bodies of the deceased and the handover of Gaza's administration to an independent technocratic Palestinian body.
Trump gave Hamas until 6 pm Washington time (2200GMT) on Sunday to approve his plan that he announced earlier this week.
The plan seeks to turn Gaza into a weapons-free zone, with a transitional governance mechanism overseen directly by Trump through a new international body tasked with monitoring implementation.
It includes the release of all Israeli captives held by Hamas within 72 hours of approval, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
The plan mandates a halt to hostilities, disarming all armed groups in Gaza, and Israel’s gradual withdrawal from the war-torn coastal enclave, which is to be governed by a technocratic authority under the supervision of an international body led by the US president.
Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza, home to nearly 2.4 million people, for nearly 18 years. It tightened the siege in March when it closed border crossings and blocked food and medicine deliveries, pushing the enclave into famine.
Since October 2023, Israeli bombardment has killed nearly 66,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children. The UN and rights groups have repeatedly warned that the enclave is being rendered uninhabitable, with starvation and disease spreading rapidly amid widespread displacement.