Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz responded to the joint statement by US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying: "I welcome President Trump for the tremendous efforts he is investing to secure the return of our hostages and ensure Israel's security. And now - it's time for initiative." According to him, "We need to implement the President's plan. We must not miss again the opportunity to return our hostages, maintain our security and achieve a strategic breakthrough that will later lead to expanded normalization. We cannot allow petty politics to derail the plan."