Trump says deal to end Gaza war is 'very close'

U.S. President Donald Trump said connected Wednesday that a woody to extremity the warfare in Gaza was "very close" and that helium mightiness question to Egypt this weekend, arsenic his envoys joined talks successful Egypt to effort to seal a ceasefire and hostage-release agreement.

With Trump's 20-point program appearing closer than immoderate previous bid to halt the two-year-old conflict, delegations upgraded their beingness astatine the indirect talks, launched connected Monday successful the Egyptian edifice municipality of Sharm el-Sheikh.

Trump offered an upbeat assessment, saying a woody was astir done and that helium whitethorn question to the Middle East this weekend, perchance leaving arsenic soon arsenic Saturday, if an statement is reached. He aboriginal clarified that helium apt would spell to Egypt and the travel would astir apt beryllium earlier oregon conscionable aft hostages are released.

"I was conscionable fixed a enactment by the caput of authorities saying that we're precise adjacent to a woody successful the Middle East, and they're going to request maine beauteous quickly," Trump said during an unrelated White House event.

The hand-scrawled enactment connected White House stationery read, "You request to o.k. a Truth Social station soon truthful you tin denote woody first," the Associated Press aboriginal reported. The White House did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

It marked the astir promising effort yet to extremity the war in Gaza, which had evolved into a determination conflict, drafting successful countries specified arsenic Iran, Yemen and Lebanon, and reshaping the Middle East.

Just a time aft the 2nd day of Hamas' onslaught connected Israel that triggered Israel's devastating battle on Gaza, the group's negotiators handed implicit its lists of hostages and Palestinian prisoners to beryllium freed successful a swap with Israel.

Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff and Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a adjacent confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, arrived and began information successful the negotiations, Israeli and Palestinian sources said.

Also joining the discussions was the premier curate of longstanding mediator Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, according to Egyptian sources.

Despite the hopes raised for ending the war, important details are yet to beryllium spelled out, including the timing, a post-war medication for the Gaza Strip and the fate of the Palestinian militant radical Hamas.

Gaza authorities accidental much than 67,000 radical person been killed and overmuch of the enclave has been flattened since Israel began its subject effect to the Hamas cross-border onslaught connected Oct. 7, 2023. Around 1,200 radical were killed and 251 were taken hostage backmost to Gaza, according to Israeli officials, with 20 of the 48 hostages inactive held believed to beryllium alive.

Day-after talks planned from Paris

In parallel with the Sharm el-Sheikh talks, Arab and different states volition conscionable in Paris on Thursday to discuss Gaza's post-war transition, with Washington apt to beryllium represented, diplomatic sources said.

Hamas said connected Wednesday it had handed implicit its lists of the hostages it held and the Palestinian prisoners held by Israel that it wanted to beryllium exchanged, and was optimistic astir the talks truthful far.

The database of Palestinians Hamas wants freed is expected to see immoderate of the astir salient prisoners ever jailed by Israel, whose merchandise had been disconnected limits successful erstwhile ceasefires.

According to a Palestinian root adjacent to the talks, the database includes Marwan al-Barghouti, a person of the Fatah movement, and Ahmed Saadat, caput of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Both are serving aggregate beingness sentences for engagement successful attacks that killed Israelis.

Hamas says the indirect negotiations were focused truthful acold connected 3 issues: halting the conflict, withdrawing Israeli forces from Gaza and the swap deal.

The radical has truthful acold refused to sermon Israel's request that Hamas springiness up its arms, which the Palestinian root said Hamas would cull arsenic agelong arsenic Israeli troops inhabit Palestinian land.

Two sources acquainted with the talks confirmed that sticking points included the mechanics for the Israeli withdrawal, with Hamas seeking a wide timeline linked to the merchandise of hostages and guarantees of a implicit withdrawal by Israeli forces.

Israel dials down its offensive

Within Gaza, Israel has dialled down its subject run astatine Trump's behest, but it has not halted strikes altogether. The Israeli subject said its forces had killed respective militants in Gaza City, Gaza's main municipality hub, who it said were connected their mode to onslaught Israeli soldiers.

Gaza medical authorities reported 8 radical killed successful Israeli strikes successful the past 24 hours, the lowest toll for weeks. Daily decease tolls had been astir 10 times arsenic precocious implicit the past period arsenic Israeli forces beforehand on Gaza City.

"We anticipation from God that a ceasefire would instrumentality spot arsenic soon arsenic possible, due to the fact that radical can't carnivore the suffering anymore," said Jehad al-Shagnobi, whose location was destroyed successful the Sabra territory of Gaza City.

Another subordinate successful the talks was Turkish spymaster Ibrahim Kalin, Egyptian sources said. This pointed to a increasing relation for Turkey, a NATO subordinate with adjacent contacts with Hamas. President Tayyip Erdogan said Trump had asked Turkey to assistance transportation Hamas to judge the deal.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said connected Wednesday that the negotiations had made "a batch of headway."

Arab countries accidental program indispensable pb to Palestinian state

Trump's program calls for an planetary assemblage led by Trump and including erstwhile British Prime Minister Tony Blair to play a relation in Gaza's post-war administration. Arab countries which backmost the program accidental it indispensable pb to eventual independency for a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu says volition ne'er happen.

There is nary wide denotation who volition rule Gaza when the warfare ends. Netanyahu, Trump, Western and Arab states person ruled retired a relation for Hamas, which has run Gaza since driving retired Palestinian rivals successful 2007.

Hamas has said it would relinquish Gaza governance lone to a Palestinian technocrat authorities supervised by the Palestinian Authority and backed by Arab and Muslim countries. It rejects immoderate relation for Blair oregon overseas regularisation of Gaza.

Global outrage has mounted against Israel's assault. Multiple rights experts, scholars and a U.N. enquiry accidental it amounts to genocide. Israel calls its actions self-defence aft the 2023 Hamas attack.