ALBAWABA- U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh on Monday afternoon to co-chair a landmark international summit aimed at securing a lasting peace in Gaza, hours after celebrating what he called a “historic end” to the two-year conflict during a visit to Israel.
Trump was greeted by Egyptian honor guards and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government played a central role in brokering the ceasefire and the recent hostage-prisoner exchange. “President el-Sisi has been a true leader in this process—strong, smart, and committed to peace. Without him, we wouldn’t be here today,” Trump told reporters.
El-Sisi praised Trump in return, calling him “the only leader who could bring real peace to the Middle East.”
The summit, dubbed the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit for Peace, convenes more than 20 world leaders to endorse Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan, focusing on ceasefire enforcement, humanitarian aid, reconstruction, and long-term regional stability.
Attendees include French President Emmanuel Macron, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and leaders from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq, and Pakistan, alongside representatives of the EU and UN.
Absent are Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—who cited a scheduling conflict, and any official Hamas or Iranian delegation, with Egypt and Qatar acting as intermediaries.
Trump’s arrival follows a high-profile stop in Jerusalem earlier in the day, where he addressed the Knesset to a standing ovation. Declaring the Gaza war “over,” he urged Israel to “seize the chance for peace,” emphasizing that “military victories must now yield to diplomacy.”
Earlier, Hamas released the last 20 living Israeli hostages in exchange for roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, a move Trump hailed as “phase two” of his broader peace initiative. The releases sparked emotional reunions in Israel and celebrations in the West Bank and Gaza.
At the Sharm El-Sheikh International Convention Center, Trump held bilateral meetings with several heads of state, including French President, Emmanuel Macron, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, ahead of a formal signing ceremony expected later Monday.
The summit’s agenda includes mechanisms for truce monitoring, a reconstruction plan backed by billions in international aid, and proposals for a transitional governing authority in Gaza involving regional and international actors, but excluding Hamas.
The event unfolds under tight security following an explosion earlier in the day in eastern Cairo, which authorities attributed to construction-related causes. Despite the brief alarm, Egyptian officials confirmed there was no threat to the summit.
