![European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gives a speech in Brussels, Belgium on September 30, 2025. [Dursun Aydemir - Anadolu Agency]](https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/AA-20250930-39262830-39262821-URSULA_VON_DER_LEYEN_MARK_RUTTE_JOINT_PRESS_CONFERENCE_IN_BRUSSELS.jpg)
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday described Hamas’s readiness to release Israeli hostages and engage on the basis of the recent ceasefire proposal put forward by US President Donald Trump as “encouraging”, Anadolu reports. “This moment must be seized. An immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all hostages are within reach,” von der Leyen wrote on the US social media platform X. Trump on Friday said he believed Hamas was “ready for lasting peace” and urged Israel to “immediately stop bombing Gaza” in order to secure the release its captives. Hamas announced its willingness to release all Israeli captives, alive and dead, and to hand over Gaza’s administration to an independent Palestinian authority composed of technocrats. […]
