President Donald Trump landed in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh on Monday for a summit with several other world leaders, aimed at ensuring that the US-led ceasefire agreement for Gaza turns into a lasting peace.
The leader flew in from Israel, where he spoke to the country’s parliament and was praised for last week’s agreement that led to a truce in Gaza over the weekend and the release of the remaining 20 live hostages held in the Palestinian territory.
They were released on Monday, as were nearly 2,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
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“They played a very important role, and they played a very important role with Hamas,” Trump said about Egypt during a meeting with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. “Hamas respects this country, and it respects Egypt’s leadership.”
The US president stated that he sees “phase two” of his peace plan as having begun and that Gaza “needs a lot of cleaning”.
Trump is on a quick trip from Washington. He arrived in Israel at around 9:30 am (local time) on Monday and will depart for the US capital after a few hours in Egypt. At the conference center on the Red Sea, other leaders were waiting for him, including French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
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They are expected to begin discussions about the future of Gaza, including sensitive issues such as persuading Hamas to disarm and ensuring the militant group does not participate in the governance of the territory, which it has controlled since 2007. They could also discuss sending peacekeepers to Gaza and how to rebuild the territory after two years of devastating war.
In Jerusalem, Trump said he was confident that the ceasefire would hold and called on both the Israeli government and the Palestinians to seize the moment as an opportunity for lasting peace.
“Israel, with our help, has achieved everything it could by force of arms,” he told the Knesset. “You won. I mean, you won. Now it’s time to turn those victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East.”
“The entire focus of the Gazenses,” he continued, “must be on restoring the foundations of stability, security, dignity and economic development, so that they can finally have the better life that their children truly deserve after all these decades of horror. I intend to be a partner in this effort.”
There is a lot of skepticism about how long the truce will last. Almost as soon as Trump finished his speech — met with rapturous applause from Israeli lawmakers — Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Hamas had not fulfilled its commitment to release the remains of all dead hostages by Monday.
“Any delay or deliberate evasion will be considered a serious breach of the agreement and will be responded to appropriately,” Katz said.
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Under last week’s agreement, 48 hostages — all but one men — were still being held in Gaza, with 20 of them alive.
There were scenes of jubilation in Israel at the release of the 20 living captives, as well as among Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank at the release of prisoners.
Israel withdrew troops from most populated areas in Gaza and agreed to allow much more aid to the Mediterranean territory, which is home to some 2.2 million people.
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Nearly all have been displaced since the start of the war, and the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza says more than 67,000 people have been killed. The Israeli army says nearly 470 of its soldiers have died in combat in Gaza.
Hamas sparked the war with an attack on Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 250 others.
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