Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
In a surprising diplomatic maneuver, U.S. President Donald Trump has reportedly committed to preventing Israel from undermining the recently brokered ceasefire in Gaza, a move that proved crucial in securing Hamas’s agreement to the deal. The revelation, reported by the American news outlet Axios on Friday, sheds light on the intense and unconventional negotiations that led to the current truce between Israel and the Palestinian factions in Gaza.
According to unnamed U.S. officials cited by Axios, Trump played a central role in the behind-the-scenes diplomacy that culminated in the agreement, announced Thursday after four days of indirect negotiations in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh. The talks were mediated by Egypt, Turkey, and Qatar, with active U.S. involvement through Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law and former senior advisor, Jared Kushner.
One of the key turning points in the negotiation process, Axios reports, was Hamas’s deep skepticism about Israel’s willingness to honor the terms of any new ceasefire. The group pointed to what it said was a clear breach of the previous truce, agreed to in January and allegedly violated by Israeli forces in March. These concerns almost derailed the talks.
In response, Trump’s envoys conveyed a strong message from the former president: the United States would ensure the full implementation of the new 20-point ceasefire agreement and would not allow Israel to sabotage it. According to sources familiar with the talks, this personal commitment from Trump was instrumental in bringing Hamas back to the negotiating table.
Perhaps most notably, Trump reportedly pledged to deploy 200 American troops to Israel not Gaza to monitor compliance with the ceasefire. These forces would remain on Israeli territory, operating from a new coordination center that would oversee the truce without crossing into Gaza. This unprecedented move, while controversial, was designed to serve as a guarantor of American oversight without becoming directly entangled in the volatile territory.
Hamas’s acceptance of the deal, bolstered by these guarantees, paved the way for Friday’s formal implementation of the ceasefire, including a phased Israeli military withdrawal and the initial steps toward a prisoner exchange. Israel’s government ratified the agreement just hours before the ceasefire took effect, and troop withdrawals from Gaza have already begun.
Trump’s announcement on Thursday emphasized the breakthrough: “We have reached the first stage of a ceasefire and hostage exchange agreement between Israel and Hamas,” he said, noting that the negotiations had involved intense indirect communication with all sides through multiple regional actors.
Israeli officials estimate that 48 hostages are still held in Gaza, 20 of whom are believed to be alive. In contrast, over 11,100 Palestinians are currently imprisoned in Israeli jails under often harsh conditions, including alleged torture, medical neglect, and starvation. Numerous human rights organizations have condemned Israel’s treatment of Palestinian prisoners, reporting dozens of deaths in custody.
Since October 8, 2023, Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has been widely criticized as a humanitarian catastrophe. According to Palestinian and international sources, the bombardment and ground invasion have killed over 67,000 people and injured nearly 170,000 many of them women and children. Starvation caused by siege tactics has reportedly claimed at least 460 more lives, including 154 children.
Trump’s hands-on approach in the Gaza ceasefire comes amid his active campaign for re-election, and analysts note that it appears aimed at reshaping perceptions of his foreign policy legacy. While his critics question the sustainability of the deal and the political motivations behind it, supporters argue that Trump has succeeded where others have failed: halting a brutal war and securing concessions from both Israel and Hamas without deploying American troops into conflict zones.
Still, the future of the ceasefire remains uncertain. With Israeli forces still occupying over half of Gaza’s territory and no permanent political settlement in sight, the road ahead is fraught with challenges. But for now, and for the civilians in Gaza caught between war and diplomacy, the ceasefire however fragile offers a desperately needed pause in the bloodshed.
