20 ISRAELI HOSTAGES RETURN HOME; WORLD HAILS ‘BIGGEST, MOST COMPLICATED DEAL’
US President Donald Trump, along with other Arab leaders, on Monday signed the peace agreement to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Trump arrived in Egypt for the second leg of his Middle East visit, following his stop in Israel, as Hamas released all 20 Israeli hostages from Gaza.
At the signing ceremony, Trump said this is an “incredible day for the world, let alone the Middle East.”
While signing the agreement to music echoing through the room, he added, “This took 3,000 years to get to this point. Can you believe it? It is going to hold up”, calling it the “biggest, most complicated deal.” Trump also met other world leaders who had arrived in Egypt for the summit. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney are among 20 heads of state attending the summit.
After landing in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt on Monday, Trump held talks with the Egyptian President. While addressing the media at the bilateral meeting, Trump said that the second phase of his peace plan has “started.” “Phase two has started,” adding that Gaza “needs a lot of clean up.”
Trump also praised Egypt, saying, “They’ve done a fantastic job.” The Egyptian President also commended Trump for his instrumental role in achieving peace between Hamas and Israel. In his speech, El-Sissi also awarded Trump the Order of the Nile, the country’s highest civilian honour.
While speaking, Trump praised India and PM Narendra Modi saying, “India is a great country with a good friend of mine at the top. He’s done a fantastic job. I think India and Pakistan will live very nicely together,” while looking at Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif
Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza outlines the establishment of a temporary technocratic government, with Israel pledging not to annex the Strip and ensuring that no residents are forced to leave.
Modi lauds Trump, Netanyahu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said India supports US President Donald Trump’s “sincere efforts” to bring peace to the region. “We welcome the release of all hostages after over two years of captivity,” Modi said on ‘X’.
“Their freedom stands as a tribute to the courage of their families, the unwavering peace efforts of President Trump and the strong resolve of Prime Minister Netanyahu,” he said.
“We support President Trump’s sincere efforts to bring peace to the region,” Modi added.