US President Donald Trump said he believes the Palestinian group Hamas (recognised as a terrorist group in the EU and the US) is ready for a “long peace” and called on Israel to stop bombing the Gaza Strip.
The statement came after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms of the US plan to end the war, while offering further talks on other issues in the plan.
“Based on the statement just released by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting peace. Israel must stop bombing Gaza immediately so we can get the hostages out safely and quickly! It is too dangerous to do that now. We are already discussing the details that need to be worked out. It’s not just about gas, it’s about long desired peace in the Middle East,” Trump wrote in Truth Social.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel “will continue to work in full cooperation with the president and his team to end the war in accordance with the principles established by Israel, which are in line with President Trump’s vision.”
Meanwhile, Reuters wrote, citing residents of Gaza City, that the Israeli military continued strikes after Trump’s call.
The previous evening, Hamas said it agreed with some aspects of US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in the Gaza Strip, particularly the release of hostages and the transfer of power in the enclave to an independent administration as part of a peaceful settlement of the situation in the region.
Hamas published its response to the US president’s proposals after Trump earlier today gave the group until Sunday to accept the entire plan.
As for other terms of Trump’s peace plan, Hamas said it would seek further negotiations.
Earlier, Israel, as well as Arab and European states, announced their support for Trump’s plan.
Trump, in announcing a deadline for Hamas on 3 October, said that if the group did not agree to the deal he was proposing, “real hell” awaited it.
Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump said Israel and other countries were “very close” to reaching an agreement to end the war in the Gaza Strip.
The White House released proposals for his 20-point peace plan, which includes a ceasefire, an exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, the disarmament of Hamas and the creation of a transitional technocratic cabinet with Palestinians and international experts as members. The plan stipulates that Hamas would be excluded from the political process. Hamas members who wish to leave Gaza would be allowed to do so. There will be no resettlement of Gazans under the agreement.
The plan also calls for the creation of an international transitional body, a “Peace Council,” headed by Donald Trump, whose members are also to include other senior officials, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The body is to be responsible for the development and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. The territory itself, the plan says, should become a “deradicalised terror-free zone” and order there should be maintained by an international stabilisation force. If Gaza reconstruction and reforms in the Palestinian Authority are successful, the document said, the path to Palestinian statehood could be opened. The U.S. would facilitate Palestinian dialogue with Israel, the plan said.