The U.S. and Egyptian presidents are chairing a gathering of world leaders dubbed “Summit for Peace” on Monday to help ending the greater than two-year Israel–Hamas battle in Gaza after a breakthrough ceasefire deal.
Israel and Hamas haven’t any direct contacts and weren’t anticipated to attend Monday’s summit. The Israeli prime minister’s workplace stated Benjamin Netanyahu is not going to journey to the venue due to a Jewish vacation.
Israel has rejected any function in Gaza for the internationally backed Palestinian Authority, whose chief, Mahmoud Abbas, arrived within the Egyptian Crimson Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh early on Monday afternoon, forward of the gathering.
The summit comes as Hamas released 20 remaining living Israeli hostages and Israel began to free lots of of Palestinians from its prisons, essential steps after a ceasefire started on Friday.
However main questions stay unanswered over what occurs subsequent, elevating the danger of slide again into battle — even because the world pushes for peace.
A brand new web page
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s workplace stated the summit goals to “finish the battle” in Gaza and “usher in a brand new web page of peace and regional stability” in keeping with U.S. President Donald Trump’s imaginative and prescient.
The 2 sides got here below strain from the USA, Arab international locations and Turkey to agree on the ceasefire’s first section negotiated in Qatar.
In March, Egypt proposed a postwar plan for Gaza that may enable its 2.3 million folks to stay. On the time, that was a counterproposal to a Trump plan to depopulate the territory.
The 2 leaders co-chairing the worldwide summit indicators that they’re working collectively on a path ahead.
Forward of the gathering, Egypt’s overseas minister stated it was additionally essential that Israel and Hamas totally implement the primary section of the deal in order that the events, with worldwide backing, can start negotiations on the second section.
The success of Trump’s vision for Mideast peace is his continued commitment to the process, together with making use of strain on the events, engagement and “even deployment on the bottom” with worldwide forces anticipated to hold out peacekeeping duties within the subsequent section, stated Egyptian Overseas Minister Badr Abdelatty.
“We’d like American engagement, even deployment on the bottom, to establish the mission, job and mandate of this pressure,” Abdelatty instructed The Related Press.
Instantly tackling the remaining points in depth is unlikely on the gathering, anticipated to final about two hours. El-Sissi and Trump are anticipated to problem a joint assertion after it ends.
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Underneath the primary section, Israeli troops pulled again from some components of Gaza, permitting lots of of hundreds of Palestinians in Gaza to return dwelling from areas they had been compelled to evacuate. Assist teams are making ready to herald massive portions of support stored out of the territory for months.
Vital challenges forward
The negotiations should deal with the problems of disarming Hamas, making a post-war authorities for Gaza and the extent of Israel’s withdrawal from the territory. Trump’s plan additionally stipulates that regional and worldwide companions will work to develop the core of a brand new Palestinian safety pressure.
Abdelatty stated the worldwide pressure wants a U.N. Safety Council decision to endorse its deployment and mandate as a peacekeeping pressure.
One other main problem is elevating funds for rebuilding Gaza. The World Financial institution, and Egypt’s postwar plan, estimate reconstruction and restoration wants in Gaza at $53 billion. Egypt plans to host a future reconstruction convention.
Earlier than the truce was agreed on, Israel and Hamas — staunch enemies who’ve little belief in one another and quite a lot of failed negotiations behind them — held negotiations in Doha, Qatar’s capital, by oblique talks, with Egypt and Qatar as meditators.
Iran, a most important backer of Hamas, can be not attending the summit in Egypt because the Islamic Republic finds itself at certainly one of its weakest moments since its 1979 revolution. Iranian officers portrayed the ceasefire deal as a victory for Hamas.
The deal nonetheless, underlined Iran’s waning affect within the area and revived considerations over doable renewed battle with Israel because it nonetheless struggles to recuperate from the 12-day battle in June.
A state perform
The summit in Egypt is prone to see world leaders reward Trump’s push for the ceasefire. For his half, el-Sissi is sort of actually relieved that plans to depopulate the Gaza Strip have been ditched.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani are attending. Turkey, which hosted Hamas political leaders for years, performed a key function in bringing in regards to the ceasefire settlement.
King Abdullah of Jordan is among the many anticipated attendees. His nation, alongside Egypt, will practice the brand new Palestinian safety pressure.
Germany, certainly one of Israel’s strongest worldwide backers and high suppliers of army tools, plans to be represented by Chancellor Friedrich Merz. He has expressed concern over Israel’s conduct of the battle and its plan for a army takeover of Gaza.
Britain’s Prime Minister is Keir Starmer is among the many leaders attending. He has stated will pledge 20 million British kilos (27 million {dollars}) to assist present water and sanitation for Gaza and stated Britain will host a three-day convention to coordinate plans for Gaza’s reconstruction and restoration.
U.N. Secretary-Basic António Guterres, European Union President António Costa and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are attending.
The venue
Sharm el-Sheikh, the Crimson Sea resort on the tip of the Sinai Peninsula, has been host to many peace negotiations previously many years.
The city was briefly occupied by Israel for a 12 months in 1956. After Israel withdrew, a United Nations peacekeeping pressure was stationed there till 1967, when Egypt’s President Gamal Abdel Nasser ordered the peacekeepers to go away, a transfer that precipitated the Six-Day Struggle that 12 months.
Sharm el-Sheikh and the remainder of the Sinai Peninsula had been returned to Egypt in 1982, following a 1979 peace treaty with Israel.
Although now extra recognized for luxurious seashore resorts, dive websites and desert excursions, Sharm el-Sheikh has additionally hosted many peace summits and rounds of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians below President Hosni Mubarak, ousted in 2011, in addition to different worldwide conferences.
Monday’s gathering is the primary peace summit below el-Sissi.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
