Israel is prepared to enter a 60-day ceasefire brokered by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt, President Donald Trump says, but neither Hamas nor the Israeli prime minister appear enthusiastic about an agreement as of midday Wednesday.
Trump initially posted about the potential ceasefire on Truth Social Tuesday.
“My Representatives had a long and productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza,” the president wrote. “Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War.”
Hamas is reviewing the proposal and meeting with Qatar and Egypt Wednesday, according to reports.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech Wednesday emphasizing the total elimination of the terrorist group.
“There will be no Hamas. There will be no Hamastan. We’re not going back to that. It’s over. We will not stop until we free all the hostages and restore security to the residents of the south and all Israeli citizens,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu is scheduled to visit the White House on Monday.
If the parties are able to come to an agreement on the ceasefire – and it holds – it would be the second 60-day ceasefire following Hamas’ October 2023 terrorist attack that sparked Israel’s military campaign. The only other ceasefire that has lasted that long began at the start of Trump’s term in January and held until mid-March.
If the U.S. is able to effectively negotiate a ceasefire, it would be added to the administration’s list of peace-making accomplishments, as it helped broker the current ceasefire between Israel and Iran and negotiate a peace agreement aiming to end a bloody decades-old conflict between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The final ceasefire proposal will come from Qatar and Egypt, who “have worked very hard to help bring Peace” to the conflict, the president said on Truth Social.
