US President And World Leaders Sign Peace Pact Aimed At Ending Gaza War
President Donald Trump, alongside leaders from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, signed the ‘The Trump Declaration for Enduring Peace and Prosperity’ in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, on Monday.
“Together, we will implement this agreement in a manner that ensures peace, security, stability, and opportunity for all peoples of the region, including both Palestinians and Israelis,” the agreement reads.
World leaders were also present at the peace summit, many offering praise to President Trump for his contribution to the cease-fire deal.
“President Trump, this is your achievement. I thank you for your tireless efforts to deliver this moment,” said British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who added that the United Kingdom is ready to assist in the plan’s ‘full implementation.”
Trump’s original 20-point peace plan outlined this in part. “The conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood” during Gaza’s reconstruction, according to Trump’s plan.
However, the President has already condemned recent efforts by western nations to recognize Palestine, and he made no mention of a Palestinian state in his remarks at the signing ceremony on Monday.
On Monday, asked by reporters about a two-state solution, Trump would only say: “We’ll have to see.”
Trump added: “I’m not talking about a single-state or double-state or two-state. A lot of people like the one-state solution, some people like the two-state solution. We’ll have to see.”
Despite mounting international pressure, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long rejected the idea of a Palestinian state.
A brief transitional government organization to supervise Gaza’s daily public services was also proposed in the original plan. Speaking to Sky News, the committee, which would be led by both Palestinian and foreign experts, is expected to include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a move that Hamas has condemned.
Blair’s attendance at the Sharm El-Sheikh meeting raises the possibility that he was involved.
Cracks in this part of the accord have already emerged, even if Monday’s hostage and prisoner exchange offered advancements on the peace process.
All 28 hostages were supposed to be turned over on Monday, but only four of the dead have been transferred to Israel thus far. The development left the hostage families “shocked and dismayed.”
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum described it as “a blatant breach of the agreement by Hamas,” calling on mediators and the Israeli government to ensure that Hamas “pays a price for this violation.”
Four coffins containing dead captives were being carried into Israel for official identification, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced Monday evening.
All four of their identities have since been verified, and their families have given their consent for two of them—Guy Iluz and Bipin Joshi—to be published.
“All parties must ensure that the return of human remains is done under dignified conditions, and uphold dignity and humanity,” said The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) which has overseen the handover of hostages, alive and deceased, as well as Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
The IDF also said Tuesday that there had been “a clear violation of the agreement” when several people approached Israeli military positions beyond the current line of withdrawal in Gaza.
Troops then opened fire “to remove the threat.”, said the IDF. Local health authorities in Gaza said that six Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire across two separate incidents on Tuesday, multiple outlets are reporting, despite the enforcement of the cease-fire.
Families on the Palestinian side said that several of the released captives had been mistreated. Additionally, there are rising concerns that a civil war may break out in Gaza. In response to accusations that it had killed members of competing organizations, Hamas has stated that it is attempting to “restore security.”
According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, more than 67,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza since the conflict began. Hamas’ terror strike on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed almost 1,200 people and took another 250 hostage, set off the battle.
The ministry is the main source of casualty data that journalists, international organizations, and humanitarian groups rely on when there is no independent monitoring taking place on the ground.
Its numbers do not distinguish between soldiers and civilians, and TIME is unable to independently verify them. According to IDF data, 83% of Palestinian civilian deaths occur in this country.