JERUSALEM: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will discuss the Gaza ceasefire with Israel's prime minister in Jerusalem on Sunday (Feb 16), launching a Middle East tour a day after the latest hostage-prisoner exchange.

On his first visit to the region as Washington's top diplomat, Rubio is expected to push US President Donald Trump's widely condemned proposal to take control of the Gaza Strip and relocate its more than two million residents.

The plan envisions redeveloping the coastal territory into the "Riviera of the Middle East" after it was devastated by more than 15 months of war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the idea during his recent White House visit, but foreign leaders have largely rejected it.

Rubio landed at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv hours after Hamas freed three Israeli hostages in Gaza in exchange for 369 Palestinian prisoners - the sixth swap under the fragile ceasefire.

Negotiations on a second phase of the truce, aimed at securing a more lasting end to the war, are expected to begin next week in Doha.

Washington has said it is open to alternative proposals from Arab governments but insists that, for now, "the only plan is Trump's".

Rubio is also due to visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with tough talks expected on Monday in Riyadh, a key player in Trump's regional strategy.

"Israel will now have to decide what they will do," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "The United States will back the decision they make!"

BRINK OF COLLAPSE

Hamas and Israel are implementing the first, 42-day phase of the ceasefire that nearly collapsed last week.

Israel had warned Hamas it must free three living hostages by the weekend or face a renewed offensive after the militant group said it would pause releases over what it described as Israeli truce violations.

Netanyahu credited "President Trump's firm stance" with ensuring Saturday's releases went ahead.

The freed hostages - Israeli-American Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36, Israeli-Russian Sasha Trupanov, 29, and Israeli-Argentine Yair Horn, 46 - returned to emotional reunions with their families.