WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Tuesday there was a “real chance” of a Gaza peace deal, as Hamas and Israeli negotiators held indirect talks on the second anniversary of the October 7 attack.
“We are very close to making a deal on the Middle East that will bring peace to the Middle East,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Trump said that US negotiators were involved in the talks now taking place in Egypt. The White House said on Monday that Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner would play a role.
“There’s a real chance that we could do something,” Trump said.
“I think there’s a possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East. It’s something even beyond the Gaza situation. We want a release of the hostages immediately.”
“Our team is over there now, another team just left, and other countries, literally every country in the world, has supported the plan.”
Trump added that the United States would to “everything possible to make sure everyone adheres to the deal” if Hamas and Israel do agree on a ceasefire to end the war.
Trump says ‘real chance’ of Gaza peace deal
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Trump says ‘real chance’ of Gaza peace deal
- “There’s a real chance that we could do something,” Trump said
- Trump added that US would to “everything possible to make sure everyone adheres to the deal” if Hamas and Israel do agree on ceasefire
Israel army ‘temporarily suspends’ strike on south Lebanon
- The Israeli military issued a warning earlier on Saturday announcing an imminent strike and warning people in the Yanuh area of south Lebanon to evacuate immediately
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said it would “temporarily” suspend a strike planned for Saturday that was intended to target what it described as Hezbollah military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
A November 2024 ceasefire sought to end over a year of fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group, which broke out after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
But Israel has repeatedly bombed Lebanon despite the truce, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah members and infrastructure to stop the group from rearming.
The Israeli military issued a warning earlier on Saturday announcing an imminent strike and warning people in the Yanuh area of south Lebanon to evacuate immediately.
But later Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee said “the strike was temporarily suspended,” adding that the military “continues to monitor the target.”
The suspension came after the Lebanese army “requested access again to the specified site... and to address the breach of the agreement,” he said on X.
Adraee added that the military would “not allow” Hezbollah to “redeploy or rearm.”
The year-old ceasefire monitoring mechanism includes the United Nations, the United States and France.
A Lebanese security source said the army had previously tried to search the building that the Israeli military wanted to target but could not because of objections from residents.
But the source told AFP that the Lebanese army was able to enter and search the building after returning a second time, because residents “felt threatened,” adding that they were evacuated over fears of a strike.
