President Trump signs document supporting ceasefire in Gaza

UPDATE (10:36 AM): President Donald Trump led a peace signing ceremony in Egypt Monday of a document supporting the ceasefire reached in Gaza, ending the Israel-Hamas War and developing a longterm vision to rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory.

President Trump officially signed the deal along with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

World leaders applauded as the signatories held up their newly signed peace documents.

Right after writing his signature, the president said, "This took 3,000 to get to this point. Can you believe it? And it's going to hold up too."

Israel and Hamas came under pressure from the United States, Arab countries and Turkey to agree on the ceasefire's first phase negotiated in Qatar through mediators.

The truce began Friday, but major questions remain over what happens next, raising the risk of a slide back into war.

The gathering reflects the international will to follow through on the deal.

More than 20 world leaders attended the summit, including King Abdullah of jordan, President Erdogan, bin Hamad Al Thani, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Israel and Hamas have no direct contacts and were not expected to attend.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not travel to the meeting because of a Jewish holiday, his office said.

Israel has rejected any role in Gaza for the internationally backed Palestinian authority and its leader, Mahmoud Abbas

The summit unfolded soon after Hamas released 20 remaining living Israeli hostages and Israel started to free hundreds of Palestinians from its prisons, crucial steps under the ceasefire.

(NBC, KYMA) - President Donald Trump departed Israel and arrived at the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh Monday for a peace summit, attended by over 20 world leaders, where a signing ceremony for a Gaza ceasefire is expected.

At the meeting, dubbed "Summit for Peace," the leaders will weigh next steps under President Trump's 20-point plan aimed at securing a lasting peace in Gaza after two years of war that began with the October 7, 2023 cross-border Hamas attack that killed around 1,200 people, with 251 taken hostage.

Aside from Trump, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney are among heads of state attending the summit.

Hamas released the last 20 surviving Israeli hostages earlier Monday under the ceasefire deal, a major step towards ending two years of shattering war in Gaza.

The release of hostages and a concurrent freeing of Palestinian detainees form a critical aspect of the first phase of the ceasefire plan.

The plan envisions an eventual role for Palestinian authority in governing Gaza, something Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu has long opposed.

However, it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.

The plan also calls for an Arab-led international security force in Gaza, along with Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan.

It said Israeli forces would leave areas as those forces deploy about 200 U.S. troops are now in Israel to monitor the ceasefire.

The plan also mentions the possibility of a future Palestinian state, another non-starter for Prime Minister Netanyahu.