Netanyahu will not attend Gaza peace summit in Egypt, prime minister’s office says
The Israeli prime minister’s office has announced that Benjamin Netanyahu will not take part in a planned Gaza summit in the Red Sea city of Sharm el-Sheikh, which more than 20 world leaders are expected to attend.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu was invited by US President Trump to participate in a conference taking place today in Egypt,” a statement by his office on the social media platform X said on Monday.
“The Prime Minister thanked President Trump for his invitation but stated that he would not be able to attend due to the proximity of the event to the start of the holiday,” it added.
Trump and Egypt’s leader, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, are set to co-host the summit.
The summit aims “to end the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional security and stability,” according to the Egyptian presidency.
An unnamed Hamas political bureau member said the group will not participate in the event, adding that the Palestinian resistance group “acted principally through Qatari and Egyptian mediators,” during previous talks on Gaza.
There are reports that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will be attending the event to finalize an agreement aimed at ending the genocidal war in Gaza.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan is also expected to attend the meeting.
Trump announced on October 8 that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of his plan for a ceasefire and prisoner swap.
The deal followed four days of indirect talks between the two sides in Sharm el-Sheikh, with delegations from Turkey, Egypt, and Qatar, under US supervision.
The deal involves the Israeli withdrawal from most of Gaza and an exchange of Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners. All remaining living Israeli captives were released on Tuesday as part of the agreement. The bodies of 28 captives will also be released.
As part of the agreement, the release of 250 Palestinian prisoners serving long and life sentences is now underway, as is the release of more than 1,700 Palestinians abducted from Gaza since October 7, 2023.
Phase two of the deal envisions a new governing framework in Gaza, a security force composed of Palestinians and troops from Arab and Muslim countries, and foreign-funded reconstruction led by Arab states.
Since October 2023, the Israeli regime’s genocidal war has killed at least 67,869 Palestinians — mostly women and children — and reduced Gaza to ruins, drawing global outrage and calls for accountability.
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