"World Needs More Trumps": Israel's Standing Ovation For US President

US President Donald Trump received a standing ovation and a high "world needs more Trumps" praise from Israeli lawmakers ahead of his speech to parliament, as Hamas released 20 remaining hostages as part of a breakthrough Gaza ceasefire deal.

Trump, who is on a brief visit to Israel, arrived on Air Force One to a red carpet in Tel Aviv on Monday. After his address at Israel's parliament in Jerusalem on his plans for the Middle East peace, he will head to Egypt for a ceremony to make the ceasefire plan.

The applause lasted several minutes as lawmakers clapped and cheered Trump, who was accompanied by his special envoy Steve Witkoff, son-in-law Jared Kushner, and daughter Ivanka.

The president was welcomed at the Israeli parliament by its speaker, Amir Ohana, who said, “Welcome to Jerusalem. Welcome to the Knesset. We've been longing for this day”. (Live updates here)

“It's a great honour,” Trump responded. He then sat at a desk to sign the guestbook with a marker.

'Trump A Giant Of Jewish History'

Ohana said that Trump is not just "another American president," but a "giant of Jewish history - one for whom we must look back two and a half millennia into the mists of time to find a parallel, in Cyrus the Great."

Cyrus the Great permitted Jews to return to Israel and rebuild the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the sixth century BCE. 

"What the world needs now is not appeasers who feed the crocodile in the hope that they will be eaten last, like we have seen at the UN General Assembly, but what the world needs now are more leaders who are brave, resolute, strong, and bold. The world needs more Trumps," Ohana said.

He also said that Israel will rally behind a Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Trump next year: 'In less than 9 months, you became one of the most consequential Presidents in history".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Trump for Operation Rising Lion and Operation Midnight Hammer - Israel and America's respective airstrikes against Iran in June. He also thanked the US President for recognising sovereignty over the Golan Heights and standing up against "lies against Israel" at the United Nations.

"Israel did what it had to do to defend its people, with heroic soldiers who fought like lions," he said.

"Trump Greatest Friend Israel Ever Had In White House"

Praising Trump, he said, "Diplomatic pressure was turned on its head as more and more governments gave in to Hamas propaganda. Just at that point of maximum pressure on Israel, Trump was elected president, and overnight, everything changed."

"Thanks to Trump's unequivocal backing of Israel, we secured a second hostage deal within weeks of your election," he added.

He described Trump as the "greatest friend" Israel has ever had in the White House. "Donald Trump is the greatest friend that the state of Israel has ever had in the White House. No American president has ever done more for Israel," Netanyahu said.

There was talk of Netanyahu joining Trump in Egypt, along with more than two dozen other leaders. Egypt even announced his attendance after Netanyahu spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

However, Netanyahu's office said later that he would not be going because the summit was too close to the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah.

"Historic Dawn Of A New Middle East"

Trump told the Israeli Parliament that the ceasefire he helped broker in the Gaza war had ushered in the "historic dawn of a new Middle East". He also promised a "golden age for Israel," just "like the USA right now."

"And after so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a holy land that is finally at peace, a land and a region that will live, God willing, in peace for all eternity," he said.

"This is not only the end of a war... This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East, " he added.

Twenty hostages were released as part of an agreement intended to end the conflict that began on October 7, 2023, after an attack by Hamas-led groups. By early afternoon, Israel also began to release Palestinian prisoners.

The first phase of the ceasefire agreement calls for the release of the final 48 hostages held by Hamas; the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel; a surge of humanitarian aid to Gaza; and a partial pullback by Israeli forces from Gaza's main cities.

The hostages, all men, arrived back in Israel, where they will reunite with their families and undergo medical checks. The bodies of the remaining 28 dead hostages are also expected to be handed over as part of the deal.