Noticeably
absent from the signing ceremony and discussions in Egypt were representatives
of Israel and Hamas, whose ceasefire—brokered by the United States—formally
began last week after two years of war in Gaza.
Among
those attending the Gaza Peace Summit were Palestinian Authority President
Mahmoud Abbas, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich
Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Qatari Emir Shiekh Tamim bin Hamad,
Turkish President Erdogan, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and senior
officials from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.
The leaders posed for a group photo in front of a backdrop
reading “Peace 2025” before a formal signing ceremony tied to the ceasefire
deal.
Trump, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
signed the document on behalf of the participating nations, with world leaders
seated behind them.
“This
took 3,000 years to get to this point. Can you believe it? And it’s going to
hold up too. It’s going to hold up,” Trump said as he signed the document.
In his remarks, Trump called the signing “a turning point
for the region,” describing it as the culmination of months of diplomacy.
“This is the day that people across this region and around
the world have been working, striving, hoping, and praying for,” he said.
“With the historic agreement we have just signed, those
prayers of millions have finally been answered.”
