On Monday, Israelis celebrated the return of all 20 living hostages still held by Hamas. Palestinians welcomed back hundreds of prisoners and detainees held in Israel. For the first time in months, humanitarian aid began to surge into war-torn Gaza.

The swap was part of the first phase of a ceasefire agreement that President Donald Trump brokered between Israel and Hamas – a step he touted as the beginning of a new era of peace across the region.

But many unanswered questions remain about how the fragile peace negotiations will continue to develop.

Colby Itkowitz speaks with Middle East reporter Abbie Cheeseman about how this deal came to be – and what questions remain for the future of Gaza.

Today’s show was produced by Thomas Lu with assistance from Rennie Svirnovskiy and Emma Talkoff. It was edited by Ted Muldoon and mixed by Sean Carter.

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The municipal animal shelter in Huntington, West Virginia, was euthanizing 50 to 75 percent of the animals that came in because they didn’t have the funding or space to care for them. Enter Courtney Proctor Cross. She was named director of the shelter in August 2018, and through hard work and fundraising she transformed the shelter into a place of hope.

This episode was produced by Ted Muldoon. The Optimist’s editor is Allison Klein.

If you want more stories from The Optimist, check out our newsletter. And let us know what you think of these stories on “Post Reports.” You can email me at maggie.penman@washpost.com or reach the whole team at podcasts@washpost.com.

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The Senate remains far apart on resolving the ongoing government shutdown. But the battle for public opinion on who’s to blame has shifted. Republicans appear split on whether to negotiate on health-care costs, as Democrats are demanding. And polling shows voters blame the GOP just as much as Democrats, if not more, for failing to fund the government.

Plus, what Attorney General Pam Bondi’s combative hearing before the Senate Oversight Committee this week signals about her place in the Trump administration, the text messages blowing up a statewide race in Virginia and the peace deal for Gaza that President Donald Trump helped broker.

Host Colby Itkowitz speaks with national politics reporter Liz Goodwin and Dan Merica, the co-anchor of The Post’s flagship politics newsletter, The Early Brief.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff and Josh Carroll. It was edited by Reena Flores and mixed by Sean Carter.

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