Trump makes optimistic claims about potential new Gaza ceasefire deal
The Hague, Netherlands - President Donald Trump claimed Wednesday that "great progress" was being made on a new ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas as the US-backed mass killing campaign in Gaza continues.
"I think great progress is being made on Gaza," Trump told reporters ahead of a NATO summit in the Netherlands, adding that his special envoy Steve Witkoff had told him "Gaza is very close."
He linked his optimism to a ceasefire agreed on Tuesday between Israel and Iran to end their 12-day war.
Netanyahu faces growing calls from opposition politicians, relatives of hostages being held in Gaza, and even members of his ruling coalition to bring an end to an assault which a growing number of experts have concluded is genocidal.
Key mediator Qatar announced Tuesday that it would launch a new push for a ceasefire, with Hamas on Wednesday saying talks had "intensified".
The Israeli government declined to comment on any new ceasefire talks beyond saying that efforts to return Israeli hostages in Gaza were ongoing "on the battlefield and via negotiations."
The vast majority of captives taken by Hamas on October 7, 2023, have been returned as a result of ceasefires, which Israel has repeatedly violated and broken.
In addition to indiscriminate bombing that has obliterated the territory and killed tens of thousands of civilians, Israel has also subjected Gaza to forced starvation.
After blocking the entry of all aid for months on end, it put a widely-derided US-funded organization staffed by military contractors – the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – in charge of distributing a paltry amount of food to hundreds of thousands of starving Palestinians.
Israeli forces have been massacring scores of people gathering to collect aid on a daily basis, with human rights organizations and legal experts warning GHF that it may be complicit in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Cover photo: REUTERS