Sharm El-Sheikh Summit: Trump says peace in the Middle East “is happening now”
Shafaq News – Sharm El-Sheikh
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that the Middle East is “going through a remarkable period,” asserting that the peace long considered impossible in the region “is now happening.”
Speaking at a brief joint press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi upon arriving in Sharm El-Sheikh to attend the Peace Summit, Trump praised Egypt’s “pivotal” role in mediating the recent US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
“Egypt played an important role with Hamas to achieve the latest agreement. The movement respects Egypt and its leadership,” he said.
The US president acknowledged the devastation in Gaza, noting that “there is a lot of rubble and destruction,” and emphasized that the enclave “needs a major cleanup operation.”
“Many leaders support this agreement… but there are fools and those who do not wish for good…countries can work with each other even if they don’t like one another.”
The Sharm El-Sheikh Peace Summit follows a ceasefire deal reached between Israel and Hamas under US sponsorship, with participation from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkiye.
Among the 31 world leaders attending are Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, French President Emmanuel Macron, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Read more:Sharm El-Sheikh Summit: A narrow opening or a carefully staged pause?
The agreement signed during the summit outlines a permanent cessation of hostilities, a prisoner exchange, the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the formation of an interim Palestinian administration to govern the territory.
