OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — US President Donald Trump on Monday told the Israeli parliament that the ceasefire he helped broker in the Gaza war had ushered in the “historic dawn of a new Middle East.”
“And after so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a holy land that is finally at peace, a land and a region that will live, God willing, in peace for all eternity,” he said.
“This is not only the end of a war… This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.”
Trump received several standing ovations from Israeli lawmakers as he prepared to give a speech after meeting with the families of Israeli captives released by Hamas on Monday.
However, his speech was briefly interrupted by left-wing lawmaker Ayman Odeh, who called for the recognition of a Palestinian state, a long-standing demand that is crucial to stability in the region.
Before his protest at the parliament, Ayman Odeh wrote on X, “The amount of hypocrisy in the plenum is unbearable. To crown Netanyahu through flattery the likes of which has never been seen, through an orchestrated group, does not absolve him and his government of the crimes against humanity committed in Gaza, nor of the responsibility for the blood of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian victims and thousands of Israeli victims.”
“But only because of the ceasefire and the overall deal am I here. Only ending the occupation, and only recognising the State of Palestine alongside Israel, will bring justice, peace, and security to all,” he wrote.
“That was very efficient,” Trump quipped as the MP was quickly taken out.
Describing his 20-point peace proposal for Gaza as a “triumph,” Trump thanked mediators from the Arab and Muslim world.
“Let me also convey my tremendous appreciation for all of the nations of the Arab and Muslim world that came together to press Hamas to set the hostages free and to send them home,” Trump said.
“We had a lot of help, we had a lot of help from a lot of people that you wouldn’t suspect, and I want to thank them very much for that. It’s an incredible triumph for Israel and the world to have all of these nations working together as partners in peace.”
The Israeli army has confirmed that all living captives held by Hamas in Gaza were released into the custody of the Red Cross on Monday. The captives were freed in two batches, with seven released earlier in the day.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday described President Trump as the “greatest friend” Israel has ever had in the White House.
“Donald Trump is the greatest friend that the state of Israel has ever had in the White House. No American president has ever done more for Israel,” Netanyahu said in parliament ahead of Trump’s address to lawmakers.
Trump was in Israel on Monday to celebrate the U.S.-brokered ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas before continuing on to Egypt for a key summit that he hopes will solidify an end to the war and pave the way for a more durable peace in the Middle East. — With inputs from agencies
