US President Donald Trump hailed a “tremendous day for the Middle East” as he and regional leaders signed a declaration on Monday meant to cement a ceasefire in Gaza, hours after Israel and Hamas exchanged hostages and prisoners.
Trump made a lightning visit to Israel, where he lauded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an address to parliament, before flying to Egypt for a Gaza summit where he and the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and Turkey signed the declaration as guarantors to the Gaza deal.
“The document is going to spell out rules and regulations and lots of other things,” Trump said before signing.
“We have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to put the old feuds and bitter hatreds behind us,” Trump said, and he urged leaders “to declare that our future will not be ruled by the fights of generations past”.
In exchange, Israel released 1,968 mostly Palestinian prisoners held in its jails, its prison service said.
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