Never miss a moment Stay ahead with live news updates in our award-winning app One year for £25. | | Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, tells the US president that the first phase of the Gaza deal is imminent | Hamas and Israel have signed off on the “first phase” of Donald Trump’s peace plan, with the terror group pledging to release all hostages.
The breakthrough, which Mr Trump called a “historic and unprecedented event”, was struck following talks between both sides and US, Qatari, Egyptian and Turkish mediators in Egypt.
Following the announcement, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, declared it a “moral victory” for his nation, and said of the hostages: “With God’s help, we will bring them all home.” Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer said it was “a moment of profound relief” that would be “felt all around the world”.
It was reported that the hostages could be freed as early as this weekend, with Israel’s cabinet set to meet today to ratify the deal.
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Below, Rob Crilly, our Chief US Correspondent, discusses what the announcement reveals about Trump’s White House.
 | Rob Crilly Chief US Correspondent | It was the sort of dramatic moment on which Donald Trump thrives.
He was presiding over a meeting at the White House to discuss Antifa and violence around the country. Reporters and cameras were recording every moment. And then Marco Rubio leaned across and passed him a note.
“I was just given a note by the secretary of state,” said the president, hushing his audience, “saying that we’re very close to a deal in the Middle East, and they’re going to need me pretty quickly”. | The note reads: “Very close. We need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first” | Text from the note, captured by photographers in the room, revealed it was a request for sign-off on a Truth Social post announcing the “first phase” of a peace deal between Israel and Hamas.
That is how history is made in this White House. With a post on the president’s own social media platform.
And not just a post. A post that has been trailed publicly on live television, amping up anticipation around the world, even as thorny negotiations continued in Egypt.
First came a false alarm, however. A political attack video, blaming Democrats for shutting down the federal government, appeared first on the president’s Truth Social account, sending journalists running for their phones.
The world didn’t have to wait long, 50 minutes to be precise, for the real thing.
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Mr Trump posted.
It might not be the deal – most of the 20-point peace agreement still needs to be negotiated – but if all goes according to plan it will bring the last remaining Israeli hostages home.
Continue reading ➤ | | Stamp duty is the worst tax. It traps people in the rental market or in unsuitable homes, it gums up the property market, and acts as a drag on the economy as a whole.
Yesterday, Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, announced a sweeping plan to scrap stamp duty if the Conservatives manage to regain power. However, it will cost a lot: residential property currently generates £10.4bn a year for the Treasury.
But, it may well be worth it. For the buyer of an average-priced home in England, it would mean a saving of £4,593 in tax, while someone purchasing a £500,000 home would save £15,000
Use our calculator to see how much you could save if the tax was abolished today.
Use our tool here ➤
How scrapping stamp duty could add billions to Britain’s economy ➤
It is no secret that Mrs Badenoch is falling behind in the polls. Yet, Annabel Denham argues that her closing speech marked a key moment in her tenure as leader and showed her true potential.
 | Annabel Denham | This was not just economically smart but a political masterstroke.
Kemi Badenoch arrived in Manchester amid whispers her MPs were growing increasingly restless, against a backdrop of dismal polling and a Reform threat gaining momentum with every passing day.
This week, she showed why she was the right choice for Tory leader. It wasn’t just the delivery, though Mrs Badenoch was on fighting form not seen since her leadership campaign. It was the content.
After decades of blancmange Cameroonian equivocation, the Conservative Party is beginning to sound conservative again.
Read Annabel’s column in full here ➤ P.S. Next week, this newsletter will be helping you get financially fit ahead of the Budget. The first weekly instalment will be in your inboxes on Tuesday morning, so keep an eye out for that. | | Allister Heath From the Chagos deal to the proposed new super embassy, Labour is kowtowing to Beijing – the West’s civilisational enemy Continue reading ➤ Michael Deacon Lenny Henry’s reparations demands won’t end racism. They’ll fuel it like never before Continue reading ➤ Tom Harris What my dispute with Owen Jones says about the modern Left Continue reading ➤ | We speak your mind Enjoy free-thinking comment that champions your values One year for £25. | | ★★★★☆
This VIP version of the hit BBC One show is great fun, writes Anita Singh. There are 19 celebrities, so even if some get on your wick, there will be others you like. In the launch episode at least, everyone behaves exactly as you would expect. Alan Carr is hilarious. Tom Daley models his own knitwear. Big personalities stand out – Paloma Faith being one of them – while quieter players, such as actor Mark Bonnar, don’t. But there are eight more episodes to go.
Is it as good as the non-celebrity version? Not quite. On the other hand, the fakery involved in being a celebrity might turn some of this lot into elite-level traitors.
Continue reading ➤ | |  | | China’s espionage capabilities are under the spotlight after the case against two suspected spies collapsed. With more manpower, more data and more time than their Western counterparts, there is “no limit to what the Chinese intelligence services will do”. That’s according to Mike Feinberg, a former FBI agent who spent years hunting their spies. But Beijing’s approach comes with a weakness…
Continue reading ➤
Simon Case challenges Starmer over China spy trial ➤ | | | “Having a tattooed, hippy woman instruct me on the art of prostate massage was the most excruciating weekend of my life,” writes one anonymous author, who reveals the sexual differences that contributed to her 10-year marriage breaking down. This reached boiling point when her husband booked a tantric retreat for a birthday “surprise”. His decision to remarry a woman half his age “almost as soon as the ink on the divorce papers had dried” was even more painful still.
Continue reading ➤ | | | After 25 happy years in his Tyneside home, Steven Moore was unexpectedly evicted in March. “I was staring down a barrel of homelessness at 59-years-old,” he recalls. Here, he shares how he redefined what “home” really means – and how he got back on his feet. Continue reading ➤ | | | There was a time when Left-wing parties could command huge swathes of the electorate in Europe. Those days are over. Socialist prime ministers and presidents are increasingly an endangered species in the conservative dominated club of European leaders. In this sweeping piece, James Crisp and Meike Eijsberg dive into the data and speak to the experts to reveal what is behind the death of the Left. Continue reading ➤ | | | Falls are the leading cause of injury-related death in over-65s, but exercising just 10 minutes a day could help you avoid them. We spoke to David Vaux, an osteopath, who recommends a short, effective routine focused on exercises which can give you the confidence, balance and strength to avoid future mishaps. Watch our series of video tutorials here. Continue reading ➤ Below are two more helpful articles for you this morning: - Sleek, simple and endlessly versatile – the regal bun is having a moment. Here are four easy ways to get a hair-do like the Princess of Wales.
- From Amor Towles to Ian McEwan, here are the books Telegraph readers and writers have been enjoying this month.
| | Surnames reveal surprising stories of our ancestors – some noble, others blunt or bizarre. Introduced more widely after the Norman Conquest, surnames swiftly came to signal social status. By the 1400s, most English people had surnames; by the 16th century, even the lowliest had them.
Many names derive from occupations, like Smith or Baker, whilst others denote appearance or character: young for youthful, White for fair, and Curtis, derived from the Old French, for “courteous”. Or, take Shakespeare: it may sound like the name of a literary sophisticate, but it is likely to have indecent origins.
What does your surname mean? Find out here ➤ | A literary legacy Orlando, your loyal reader correspondent, is on a much needed holiday and will be back with you next week. For now, Kate Moore is on hand to bring you an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Kate writes...
No one can dispute that libraries perform a valuable public service – even if, these days, many of them seem intent on getting rid of their books. The last time I visited my library in central London it was literally giving books away; you could make off with a paperback of your choice from the reject shelves. A glossily laminated copy of Mary Renault’s The King Must Die now sits on my bookshelf at home. I feel a slight pang every time I look at it, as though it’s still accumulating a late return fee long into its retirement.
Fortunately, print and paper are still valued in certain circles. Last week, Marie-Louise Neill wrote of a heartening effort to encourage student participation in libraries. In her school the year six pupils could choose to donate an “end of primary” legacy in the form of a favourite book. She said: “We designed stickers to go inside and mark their donation. This is what a reading culture looks like.”
For keen readers, a beloved book can feel like a companion. John Frankel recalled “dreading” his first day at prep school, until “I went into the school library and saw they had my favourite book, Down with Skool. I breathed more easily after that”.
There is another, perhaps less widely acknowledged community in which libraries still have an important role. “When my son was young I used to reserve graphic books online for him, which we would then collect from the library,” wrote Susan Whitehead. “One particular book he was interested in reading was never available as it was noted that it was on permanent loan to Shepton Mallet Prison.”
Imaginations, at least, must be allowed to roam free – up to a point. Stuart Harrington, who worked in a prison in the 1990s, found that “the prison librarian was required to check, and if needed deny, all requests for any books that glorified crime or were otherwise inappropriate.
“One day she was very confused by a stream of requests for a book about a hobby that she thought was harmless but not one that her regular customers would be interested in.
“So I proceeded to tell her what Trainspotting was really all about.”
What “legacy” book would you give to your school? Send us your stories here, or head to our Your Say page, exclusively on the Telegraph app. | Plan your day with the telegraph | Set your alarm to catch up with journalists on the Your Say page and listen to their analysis on our latest podcasts.
| | Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
The solution to yesterday’s clue was FRAMEWORK. Come back tomorrow for the answer to today’s puzzle. | | Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. Please let me know what you think of this newsletter. You can email me here. | |
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