United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is visiting the White House, is \u201cvery close\u201d to agreeing on a deal to end the Gaza conflict. Addressing a press conference, Trump said this was a \u201cbig, big day\u201d. \u201cThings that have been going on for hundreds of years, thousands of years \u2026 at minimum, we are very, very close and beyond very close,\u201d Trump said, thanking Netanyahu for his role in the peace process. \u201cWe worked well together, and have with many other countries, which is how this situation gets solved.\u201d Trump said that he was aiming for peace in the Middle East at large, not just the Gaza Strip. He added that he and Netanyahu discussed issues like Iran, the Abraham Accords and ending the Gaza conflict. \u201cThis is part of the bigger picture, which is peace in the Middle East \u2026 let\u2019s call it \u2018eternal\u2019 peace in the Middle East,\u201d he said. \u201cAfter extensive consultation with our friends and partners throughout the region, I am formally releasing our principles for peace,\u201d Trump announced, adding that people \u201chave really liked\u201d them. \u201cThese are done with total consideration and working with the nations we are talking about,\u201d he added. \u201cI want to thank the leaders of many Arab and Muslim nations for their tremendous support in developing the proposal, as well as our allies in Europe. \u201cThe prime minister and the field marshal of Pakistan they were with us right from the beginning. In fact they just put out a statement that they fully believe in this pact,\u201d Trump stated. \u201cThey back this 100 per cent.\u201d The US president also thanked Netanyahu for agreeing to the plan and for \u201ctrusting that if we work together, we can bring an end to the death and destruction\u201d in the region. \u201cIf accepted by Hamas, this proposal calls for the release of all remaining hostages immediately, but in no case, more than 72 hours,\u201d Trump said. \u201cThe hostages are coming back.\u201d Trump said this means \u201can immediate end to the war itself\u201d. \u201cUnder the plan, Arab and Muslim countries have committed \u2026 to demilitarise Gaza quickly, decommission the military capabilities of Hamas and all other terror organisations and we are relying on the countries we named and others to deal with Hamas and I\u2019m hearing Hamas wants to get this done too.\u201d Trump added that as part of the agreement, \u201cterror infrastructure\u201d, including tunnels and weapon production facilities, would be dismantled and local police forces would be trained in the Gaza Strip. \u201cWorking with the new transitional authority in Gaza, all parties will agree on a timeline for Israeli forces to withdraw in phases \u2026 no more shooting hopefully,\u201d Trump stated. \u201cArab and Muslim nations need to be allowed a chance of fulfilling these commitments of dealing with Hamas. They are the one group I have not dealt with,\u201d he added. \u201cIf Hamas rejects the deal, which is always possible \u2026 I have a feeling that we\u2019re going to have a positive answer, but if not, as you know Bibi (Netanyahu) you have my full backing to do what you have to do. The US president emphasised that ultimately, the goal is to eliminate any danger in the reason, which he attributed to Hamas. \u201cTo ensure the success of this effort, my plan calls for the creation of a new international oversight body,\u201d he said, calling it the \u2018Board of Peace\u2019 and stating that it would be led by Arab leaders, Israel and Trump himself. \u201cWe\u2019re going to do it right, we\u2019re going to put leaders from other countries on and leaders who are very distinguished,\u201d Trump said. \u201cOne of the people who wants to be on the Board is the UK former prime minister Tony Blair.\u201d Trump said there would be more leaders and that their names would be announced in the coming days. He added that the World Bank would be charged with training and recruiting a new government made up of Palestinians and \u201chighly qualified experts from around the world\u201d. \u201cHamas and other terror organisations will play no role in the governance of Gaza, at all,\u201d he stated. Earlier, Netanyahu expressed regret for an Israeli attack in Doha to Qatar\u2019s leader in a three-way call with Trump, the White House said. It added that Netanyahu also expressed regret for Israel violating Qatari sovereignty and \u201caffirmed that Israel will not conduct such an attack again in the future\u201c. \u201cThe leaders discussed a proposal for ending the war in Gaza, prospects for a more secure Middle East, and the need for greater understanding between their countries,\u201d the White House said before a news conference with Trump and the Israeli prime minister. Ahead of formal consultations, Trump had told his guests: \u201cWe have to get the hostages back \u2026 This is the group that can do it, more than any other group in the world \u2026 so it\u2019s an honour to be with you.\u201d Trump had also emphasised the urgency of ending the conflict: \u201cWe had 32 meetings here, this is the one that\u2019s very important because we\u2019re gonna end something that should\u2019ve probably never started.\u201d According to reports from Israel\u2019s Channel 12 and US-based Axios, President Trump\u2019s plan envisions an immediate ceasefire and the release of hostages, both alive and deceased; phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza Governance excluding Hamas but incorporating the Palestinian Authority; deployment of Arab and Muslim peacekeepers to secure Gaza and facilitate Israel\u2019s withdrawal; and internationally supported reconstruction and transition programmes funded by regional contributors. These details were reportedly shared with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, though Israel did not draft the plan. Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a TV interview that Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas are \u201cvery close\u201d to reaching an agreement on a framework deal to end Israel\u2019s bombardment in Gaza and ensure lasting peace in the Middle East. Leavitt, speaking on Fox News\u2019 \u2018Fox and Friends\u2019 programme, said Trump would discuss a 21-point peace plan with Netanyahu at the White House later today. \u201cTrump will speak to leaders in Qatar, who have served as intermediaries with Hamas,\u201d she said. \u201cTo reach a reasonable deal for both sides, both sides have to give up a little bit and might leave the table a little bit unhappy, but that is ultimately how we are going to end this conflict,\u201d Leavitt added. PM Shehbaz welcomes Gaza plan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed US President Donald Trump\u2019s plan to bring the Israeli invasion of Gaza to an end. His statement came in a post on X as the US president greeted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House for talks on the US-led peace plan. Before the meeting, Trump had told reporters he was \u201cvery confident\u201d that there would be peace in Gaza. Asked if all parties were on board with his 21-point plan, he repeated, \u201cvery confident\u201d. Meanwhile, PM Shehbaz posted on X: \u201cI welcome President Trump\u2019s 20-point [sic] plan to ensure an end to the war in Gaza. \u201cI am also convinced that durable peace between the Palestinian people and Israel would be essential in bringing political stability and economic growth to the region,\u201d the PM wrote. He added, \u201cIt is also my firm belief that President Trump is fully prepared to assist in whatever way necessary to make this extremely important and urgent understanding to become a reality.\u201d PM Shehbaz also lauded \u201cTrump\u2019s leadership and [his] special envoy Steve Witkoff for their efforts in bringing an end to the nearly two-year-long conflict\u201d. \u201cI also strongly believe that the implementation of the two-state proposal is essential to ensure lasting peace in the region,\u201d he added. Earlier in the day, he also spoke to Pakistani journalists in London, where he spoke about Trump\u2019s meeting with Muslims leaders on Gaza in New York last week. The meeting on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly had brought together leaders from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Turkiye, and Indonesia. During his interaction with journalists in London today, PM Shehbaz \u201ca very constructive discussion took place\u201d at the meeting. He added, \u201cAs a result of that meeting, very soon, a positive result may come that in the Gaza war, there may be a ceasefire.\u201d In less than two years, Israel\u2019s onslaught on Gaza has killed at least 65,549 people and wounded 167,518, besides displacing millions from their areas. Earlier this month, UN investigators said that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza in a bid to \u201cdestroy the Palestinians\u201d, accusing Israel\u2019s prime minister and other top officials of incitement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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