Trump says Hamas is ready for peace, says ‘Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza’
Donald Trump just welcomed the response from Hamas to his peace plan, without worrying about the parts of it that the Palestinian movement said need to be negotiated further, and urged Israel to stop bombing Gaza “immediately” in a social media post that was shared by the White House.
Trump, who is eager for a Nobel peace prize and appears ready to declare victory, wrote:
Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly! Right now, it’s far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East.
Key events
Israeli opposition leader tells Trump he would support Netanyahu government to close Gaza peace deal
Yair Lapid, the former television anchor who leads Israel’s main opposition party, says that he has informed the White House that his party will support the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to close a peace deal in Gaza. The opposition’s support would be necessary to keep Netanyahu in power should far-right ministers in the governing coalition who want to continue the war withdraw from the government.
“President Trump,” Lapid posted, “is right that there is a genuine opportunity to release the hostages and end the war. Israel should announce it is joining the discussions led by the president to finalize the details of the deal. I have told the US administration that Netanyahu has political backing at home to continue the process.”
Egypt welcomes Hamas response to Trump plan for end to war in Gaza
In a statement posted on social media, the Egyptian government, which has played a central role in negotiations with Hamas, has welcomed the Palestinian movement’s response to the plan announced this week by Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister.
The statement thanks Trump for his vision to achieve peace and stability in the region, his “complete rejection” of the annexation of the Israeli-occupied West Bank by Israel or the displacement of the Palestinian people from their lands.
Trump says Hamas is ready for peace, says ‘Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza’
Donald Trump just welcomed the response from Hamas to his peace plan, without worrying about the parts of it that the Palestinian movement said need to be negotiated further, and urged Israel to stop bombing Gaza “immediately” in a social media post that was shared by the White House.
Trump, who is eager for a Nobel peace prize and appears ready to declare victory, wrote:
Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly! Right now, it’s far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East.
White House releases full text of Hamas response to Trump’s proposal
Donald Trump has posted the full text of the Hamas statement in response to his proposed plan to end the war in Gaza on his social media platform.
The White House initially posted the text on X as well, but that post was removed without explanation, forcing anyone who wantws to read it to visit the president’s own platform.
Trump records Oval Office response to Hamas
Donald Trump has just recorded an Oval Office video in response to what his White House press secretary calls “Hamas’ acceptance of his Peace Plan.”
While the Hamas response to the Trump plan for an end to the war in Gaza signals a willingness to had over governance of the territory, it specifically says that the new government should be made up of Palestinian technocrats, not a foreign-run “board of peace” overseen by the US president.
A few hours ago, the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, who rules over isolated sections of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, announced that Palestinian officials were drafting a temporary constitution for the state of Palestine, which includes Gaza, to be ready within three months.
“We reaffirm our commitment to holding general presidential and parliamentary elections within one year after the end of the war,” Abbas said, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Abbas has not stood for election since 2005, and there have been no elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council since 2006, when Hamas won a majority of seats in the West Bank and Gaza. In 2007, power-sharing between Hamas and Abbas collapsed and Hamas seized control of Gaza after armed conflict with forces loyal to the president.
In a copy of the statement seen by Reuters, Hamas issued its response to Trump’s 20-point plan after the US president today gave the group until Sunday to accept or reject the proposal. Trump has not said whether the terms would be subject to negotiation, as Hamas is seeking.
Notably, Hamas did not say whether it would agree to a stipulation that it disarm, a demand by Israel and the US that it has previously rejected.
In its statement, Hamas said it “appreciates the Arab, Islamic, and international efforts, as well as the efforts of U.S. President Donald Trump, calling for an end to the war on the Gaza Strip, the exchange of prisoners, (and) the immediate entry of aid,” among other terms.
It said it was announcing its “approval of releasing all occupation prisoners — both living and remains — according to the exchange formula contained in President Trump’s proposal, with the necessary field conditions for implementing the exchange.”
But Hamas added: “In this context, the movement affirms its readiness to immediately enter, through the mediators, into negotiations to discuss the details.”
The group said it was ready “to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian body of independents (technocrats) based on Palestinian national consensus and supported by Arab and Islamic backing”.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Hamas’ response to the proposal, which is backed by Israel as well as Arab and European powers.
Among the 20 points in Trump’s plan are an immediate ceasefire, an exchange of all hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, a staged Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas and the introduction of a transitional government led by an international body.
Hamas accepts some elements of Trump’s Gaza plan but says others require further negotiations
As we get more from Hamas’s statement trickling in, the group has said it has accepted some elements of Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, including handing over administration of Gaza and releasing all the remaining hostages, but that it would seek further negotiations over many of its other terms.
In its statement, Hamas says it appreciates the efforts of Arab, Islamic and international efforts, as well as the efforts of US president Donald Trump.
I’ll bring you more from the statement as soon as we get it.
Hamas has also agreed to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip “to a Palestinian body of independent technocrats”, according to the statement.
