After 471 days of war between Israel and Hamas, President Joe Biden on Sunday heralded the start of a negotiated cease-fire and hostage-release deal, which went into effect on his last full day in office.

“Today, the guns in Gaza have gone silent,” Biden said, speaking just moments after the first three Israeli hostages were released.

“The deal that I first put forward last May for the Middle East has finally come to fruition,” Biden said in brief remarks before delivering a speech at a church in South Carolina. “The cease-fire has gone into effect in Gaza today. We’re seeing hostages be released, three Israeli women held against their will in the dark tunnels for 470 days.”

Biden’s comments allowed the president to take a small victory lap, but the implementation of the rest of the deal — including 30 more hostages slated to be released in the first phase — will be presided over by President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Monday. 

“We got here without a wider war in the Middle East as many predicted. And now it falls to the next administration to help implement this deal,” said Biden.

Romi Gonen, Emily Damari and Doron Steinbrecher were the first hostages to be released. Four more women are expected to be released in a week, Biden said, with three additional hostages released each week afterward. At least two Americans are expected to be released in the first phase, which lasts six weeks. 

“The road to this deal has been not easy at all, a long road, but we’ve reached this point today because of the pressure Israel built on Hamas backed by the United States,” said Biden. 

The outgoing president acknowledged critics of his approach to the war but defended his policies. 

“Some said my policy of firm support for Israel while relentlessly pursuing diplomacy risked drawing America into a wider war in the region,” said Biden. “I listened to those voices, many of whom I respected a great deal, but I concluded, abandoning the course I was on would not have led us to the cease-fire … but instead, it would have risked the wider war in the region that so many feared.”

Biden said the “region has been fundamentally transformed,” offering a list of major achievements since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, among them that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is dead, Hamas’ sponsors “have been badly weakened by Israel backed by the United States,” Hezbollah is “significantly weakened,” the Assad regime in Syria is gone and Iran “is in the weakest position in decades.” 

The president’s message to his successor: “The pursuit of a lasting peace, while never easy or quick, must always be our calling,” Biden said.