In his end-of-year address on Wednesday evening, US President Donald Trump claimed that there was peace in the Middle East for the first time in 3,000 years.
Trump said he "ended the war in Gaza, and secured the release of hostages, both living and dead."
He did not mention the last hostage remaining in Gaza, Ran Gvili.
This comes amid doubts about the ceasefire's future, less than a week after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the assassination of Hamas official Ra'ad Sa'ad over multiple ceasefire violations.
Two American sources told Axios that the White House had sent a message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, expressing Washington’s anger over the assassination of senior Hamas official Sa’ad Ra’ad, which it described as an Israeli violation of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Questions on Phase II of the ceasefire deal
Top sources suggested that the US was either not informed or not consulted before the assassination, raising new questions about how Phase II of the ceasefire will play out.
President Trump was expected to announce the transition to the second phase of the deal during December, according to an Axios report earlier this month. However, Israel has maintained the position that the deal will not move forward without Hamas's disarmament and the return of the final hostage.