Screaming protesters interrupt Trump’s victory speech, security swiftly evacuates them
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
United States President Donald Trump’s victory speech after Israeli and Palestinian hostages were freed on Monday – for which he had claimed credit in advance, lobbied to be given the Nobel Peace Prize, and groused it was awarded to someone else – was halted in the Israeli parliament later on by screaming protesters.
Trump attracts crowds of protesters nearly everywhere he visits outside the US, as critics describe him as dishonest, divisive, misogynistic, a hypocrite and racist – epitomised by his anti-immigrant aggression, even against lawful US citizens, despite himself having a household of immigrants with half American and half foreign roots.
Daily Mail reports that Trum’s speech to the Israeli parliament (the Knesset) was interrupted by screaming protesters on Monday morning after all the living hostages in Gaza were released as part of the historic peace deal.
During his speech, Arab Knesset members Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif held up a sign that read, ‘genocide.’ They were quickly removed from the room as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized.
‘That was very efficient,’ Trump said after the protesters were escorted out.
Trump was in Israel on Monday to celebrate the U.S.-brokered ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas before continuing on to Egypt for a key summit that he hopes will solidify an end to the war and pave the way for a more durable peace in the Middle East.
Knesset members Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif held up a sign that read, ‘genocide’
Security officials remove a Knesset member who interrupted Trump speech to the Knesset
Trump addressed Israel’s Knesset after all the living hostages in Gaza were released as part of the historic peace deal
Emotional images show Israeli hostages reunited with their families
Trump took the podium after an address to the Israeli parliament by Netanyahu, which concluded with Trump getting up from his seat and shaking hands with the prime minister, before embracing him.
That embrace prompted chants of ‘Trump! Trump! Trump!’
Trump later started his own remarks by saying, ‘It’s a great honor’ and calling the Knesset a ‘nice place.’
‘This is a great day, this is a whole new beginning,’ Trump told reporters after arriving at the Knesset. ‘And I think there’s never been an event like it, I’ve never seen anything like it.’
He received several standing ovations from Israeli lawmakers as he prepared to give a speech after meeting with the families of hostages. He may also stop at the Sheba Medical Center to meet some of the hostages themselves.
Twenty hostages were released Monday as part of an agreement intended to end the conflict that began with the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas-led militants. By early afternoon, Israel also began to release Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Netanyahu greeted Trump on the tarmac as a military band played. In Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, the site of continuous demonstrations during two years of war, the crowd cheered for Trump.
Amir Ohana, the Knesset speaker, welcomed Trump to the parliament by saying ‘we’ve been longing for this day.’ Some people in the gallery wore red hats that said ‘Trump, The Peace President.’
Trump signed a welcome book before speaking to Israel’s Knesset. ‘This is my great honor – a great and beautiful day. A new beginning,’ the president wrote as Israeli hostages were released from Gaza
Ivanka Trump arrives before Trump speaks to the Knesset
Early Monday morning as Trump arrived in Israel, the 20 living Israeli hostages were released to Israeli forces and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were delivered by the busload to the West Bank.
For the first time in two years, Hamas no longer has any Israeli captives. Over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel will also be set free as part of the deal.
The watershed moment solidifies Trump’s transition from New York dealmaker to global peacemaker. This was evident when the Knesset honored the US president with a nearly three-minute standing ovation and broke out in cheers, chanting ‘Trump, Trump, Trump…’
Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio also received major applause.
Kushner and Witkoff have been praised by Trump and the Israelis for their central role in negotiating the details of the peace agreement.
Still, there are already questions whether the ceasefire can hold beyond the release of hostages and prisoners.
Over the weekend, a senior Hamas official told AFP that disarmament is ‘out of the question,’ declaring that demands for the group to hand over its weapons are non-negotiable.
The square was full of thousands jubilant citizens as the two-year war in Gaza nears its end
A drone view shows thousands at Hostages Square on the day Hamas returned the surviving captives taken two years ago on October 7, 2023
And Netanyahu has emphasized that the current ceasefire is temporary and that Israel retains the option to resume its military operations if Hamas fails to meet the terms of the agreement, particularly regarding disarmament.
Trump, during his speech, noted the prime minister is not the easiest man to work with, but lauded his patriotism and resolve amid the years-long war.
Trump is the fourth president to address the Knesset; only Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush had done it before. People spectating the Knesset address donned red MAGA-style caps reading: ‘Trump the peace president.’
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