US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they have agreed to a 20-point plan aimed at ending the war in Gaza, but the prospects for peace remain unclear without the direct participation of Hamas.
Trump said at a press conference with Netanyahu on Monday that the framework has received support from other leaders in the Middle East and Muslim-majority countries, and hinted that the framework could lay the foundation for broader peace in the region.
Despite this, the proposal that Hamas must not get involved in the future affairs of Gaza must be accepted by the armed group and it needs to make substantive concessions. Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering a war. Before Trump’s meeting with Netanyahu, Hamas said it had not yet seen the plan and needed to study the proposal.
Trump warned that “if Hamas rejects the agreement”, then Netanyahu will “have our full support” to destroy this radical organization.
“We’re not done yet.” We must defeat Hamas, but I think they can do it. “So it’s time for Hamas to accept the terms of the plan we proposed today,” Trump said.
The plan stipulates that if both Israel and Hamas accept it, the two-year-long conflict will come to an immediate end and all hostages and the remains of the victims will be returned within 72 hours. The agreement will also allow Israel to release nearly 2,000 prisoners and stipulate that Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza.
The proposal encourages Gaza residents to stay put, promises to immediately resume aid, and states that a “panel of experts” will be convened to “rebuild and revitalize” war-torn areas through economic development.
Netanyahu said at a press conference that he supported Trump’s plan to end the war, calling it “the achievement of our war goals.”
He added, “In the foreseeable future, Israel will retain its security responsibilities, including the security cordon.”
The plan requires Hamas to agree not to directly or indirectly participate in the governance of Gaza, but to transfer the control of the region to a “technocratic, non-political Palestinian committee responsible for providing daily public services”. The committee will be overseen by the “Peace Council” chaired by Trump and will invite other world leaders, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, to participate. The clause also states that if the agreement is implemented, the conditions for the establishment of a Palestinian state “may eventually be met”.
Trump said the plan announced on Monday would lay the foundation for broader peace in the Middle East and emphasized that he was working hard to persuade more Gulf Arab countries to normalize relations with Israel. The president said that Arab and Muslim partners “are fully prepared”.
When talking about this 20-point plan, Trump said, “This is only part of a larger blueprint, which is peace in the Middle East, and we call it permanent peace in the Middle East.” So this far exceeded anyone’s expectations and also reflects the extent of support I have received from Middle Eastern countries.
Trump shared his plans when meeting with leaders of Muslim-majority countries during the United Nations General Assembly in New York last week and hinted that progress was on the way.
Trump and Netanyahu held their fourth meeting of the year on Monday, at a time when Israel is increasingly isolated on the international stage and the pressure from the US President for a ceasefire is growing.
Earlier on Monday, Trump arranged for Netanyahu to have a phone call with the Prime Minister of Qatar, which paved the way for reaching an agreement. Netanyahu expressed regret over the phone over Qatar’s attack on Doha and the killing of a senior Hamas leader. Qatar, a key mediator between Israel and Hamas and home to the largest US military base in the region, like other Arab countries, is outraged by this attack.
According to the White House, Netanyahu expressed regret during the phone call, saying that the attack accident had resulted in the death of a Qatari soldier.
Trump said that the Prime Minister of Qatar and Netanyahu had a “heart-to-heart” conversation and that the three countries had reached an agreement to establish a formal trilateral working group to “strengthen common security, correct misunderstandings and avoid future doubts”.
But the president, who firmly supports Israel, also expressed dissatisfaction with Netanyahu’s continued winger of war.
Earlier this month, after the attack in Doha, Trump publicly condemned Netanyahu and issued a stern warning last week, saying that he would not allow Netanyahu to annex the West Bank, as such a move might further intensify tensions in the region and endanger Trump’s hope for broader normalization of relations between the Gulf Arab states and Israel. And it threatens the viability of the future Palestinian State.
I have never asked Israel to compromise its security, but we have held important and tough talks. “Nobody is better than Israel,” Trump said on Monday. “Bibi (Netanyahu), he knows it’s time.” “
